Ninja in a Demon's World
by randominuyasha
Summary: When Gaara's inner demon acts up again, it shows never before seen powers. Gaara's transported to the Feudal Era, and must learn to get around in this new world. Evil catches him in its web, and he gets drawn in. InuyashaNaruto cross. Please R&R.
1. The Forest Discovery

Chapter 1

"What're you talking about?" Naruto yelled, as he stared madly up at Kakashi. Kakashi smiled at the young boy, though you could only tell by his one visible squinting eye; most of his face was hidden by cloth and his hitai-ate, as usual.

"Naruto, calm down," Kakashi said calmly, as he ruffled his apprentice's hair, "I only said that your little bout with Gaara will have to wait."

Kakashi knew that it wasn't necessary to keep Naruto from his fight, but he felt that is was for the best. He had a bad feeling about that ninja from the Village Hidden in the Sand; there was a good chance that his inner demon would be let loose again, if he did indeed go up against Naruto.

"But…please, Kakashi? If I'm going to be the next Hokage, I have to be able to beat anyone. And that includes that creepy sand village guy. I know that I can do it! Believe it!" Naruto recited overconfidently, as he stroked a heroic pose.

"I'm sure you would be perfectly capable, but…no." Kakashi answered. He really didn't want to argue at the moment; he had just successfully completed an 'A' ranked stealth mission, and he was wiped.

((Change in focus))

"Man, Gaara's creepier than usual today…I wonder what's going on inside that head of his," Kankuro said to whomever happened to be listening.

"Tell me about it," Temari agreed, as she stopped polishing her deadly fan, and looked in the direction that Gaara had sulkily walked away.

Gaara had been acting strange all day; more so than usual, that is. He seemed more moody and emo than usual. Temari and Kankuro were afraid of their brother to begin with, but this was different. They felt that if they were to so much as breathe around him, they could end up dead; that's how thick the tension had grown to.

The two Sand Village occupants figured that Gaara was remembering his dark and gloomy past, although their comrade had never let it bother him before. That was one of the many rules of being a ninja; show no emotion. But although he didn't show his hurting, his inside was probably a whole nother story.

But there was nothing they could do about the matter, so they went on their way, and continued what they had been doing in the first place: Temari polishing her precious fan, and Kankuro thinking up battle strategies.

Soon they were finished their tasks, and they decided to do some battle training. They knew that they had to be some of the most talented ninjas of the Sand Village, but there was always room for improvement.

They made their way to their usual training ground, and then suddenly turned off their path. They had picked out a special spot deep in the woods, far away from their ordinary training ground, where there wasn't much chance on any other ninjas stumbling upon it. It was a place that only the three siblings knew about.

As they walked along, brittle leaves crunched under their feet with every step. It was midsummer, and the trees were enveloped by healthy green leaves. Chirping filled their ears, and the birds that were doing the talking flew all around Temari and Kankuro.

"Get!" Kankuro told the passing birds, as he waved his hands in the air. He didn't have time for childish things like watching birds fly by.

"Leave 'em alone, Kankuro. They never did anything to you," Temari scolded, as she pushed away one of the many leaf-covered branches that were sticking out onto the path.

"Right, but they could be spies. A ninja can use anything against an opponent," Kankuro pointed out.

Temari fell silent. She knew that her brother was right, but she hated the thought of war, and the place they were heading was one of the few places they could escape from it.

They continued on, and pushed through the bushes and branches that seemed to point at them from all angles. They made their way through the course that they had set up. Soon, though not before obtaining a few cuts and scratches, they arrived at their destination.

"Watch out for the traps," Kankuro cautioned, as he stepped over one of the many traps that surrounded the peaceful clearing. He wanted this to be a sanctuary, and he was fully prepared to protect it. Keeping that in mind, he said, "I set them up, just in case."

"Good thinking. You can never be too careful, when you're a ninja," Temari concurred.

Once they avoided the traps that had been so carefully set up, they stepped into the clearing that they called their own. It was their own special place; a place to train, to be alone, to escape from the reality of war, and a place to just… be themselves.

They enjoyed the peaceful calmness that was concealed within their little getaway, hoping with all their hearts that the Sand Village's constant wars wouldn't reach it.

The longer they stayed, the more at peace they felt. As the two stood there in the clearing, the peacefulness washed over them, and the gradually felt very calm and collected. That was another thing they liked about the hideaway; it was hard to not relax.

Little did they know, Gaara was hidden among the trees at the other end of the clearing.

((Change in focus))

Even though the clearing had a way of relaxing people, it had the exact opposite effect on Gaara. The place seemed to bring back memories of his childhood, when he was an outcast, and was alone and wondering most of the time.

"Why?" he whispered loudly to himself, "Why did father have to put this…THING inside of me?" He sadly gazed up at the cloudless blue sky. A feeling of great sadness washed over him, making him sadder than he had been in a long time.

He decided that sulking wouldn't get him anywhere, so he left his place in the shade of a great oak tree to go find some action. At least if he was on the most wanted list like Orochimaru, he'd get some well-deserved attention.

He walked into the clearing, and got a nasty surprise. His food landed in one particularly grassy patch, and discovered one of Kankuro's traps; he had neglected to tell Gaara about them.

Gaara was lifted high into the air by the thick rope that was now tied to his ankle. He didn't exactly like hanging upside down like an opossum, so he started working at the complex knot that held him there. But although he tried, he didn't put much effort into it; he got some time to cool down, and attempt to talk himself out of his decision. Although he was desperate for attention, he didn't want to completely ruin his life.

"Impudence…" he muttered, as he continued to effortlessly work at the knot. Without him noticing, the sand demon that was harbored in his flesh sprang to life and protected him. In an instant, a thick barrier of sand was reaching out from his urn, five kunai sunk deeply into it.

((Change in focus))

"What was that?" Temari asked, as she attempted to locate where the noise had come from. She easily found where it originated, as a flock of birds flew into the air as soon as it had happened.

"I don't…hey! That's one of the traps I set! Something must have triggered it!" Kankuro said, fear creeping into his voice.

"Or someone…" Temari whispered sadly.

Kankuro took note of his sister's sadness. If an intruder had found their little piece of land, they would have no hideaway; no place to hide from the harshness of the constant wars that raged in the Village of the Sand. It wasn't really himself that he was worried about; he could handle it. It was Temari he was fretting for; she needed this place.

Keeping his younger sister's needs in mind, he got ready for a potential battle. He didn't want to disturb the peace and engage in a fight, but he was prepared to if things came to that.

In moments he and Temari had thought up a plan, and were leaping through the trees. As they hopped from tree to tree, they surveyed the scene. They didn't spot anyone on the ground, nor did they spy anyone among the trees.

"Where's the trap?" Temari asked, tension creeping into her quivering voice.

The last of the birds were flying from their perches in the trees, secretly telling the two that the trap was just ahead. "It's just around the corner…there!" Kankuro announced when he saw something hanging from a tree. "That's the trap. Looks like we did catch someone."

As the two advanced, they slowed their pace. Not only did they slow to remain hidden, though; Temari had also become very depressed at the thought of invaders. If the culprit was dangerous they had to be very careful, so they both kept that in mind as they crept along at a slower pace.

"Gaara!" Temari gasped when she observed him hanging upside down from the tree.

"Get. Me. Down," the boy hissed.

"OK, Gaara…I'm so sorry! It'll never happen again!" Kakuro reported in a very intimidated voice. His voice was filled with fear of his big brother.

He unwrapped the binding that held his puppet to his back, and sent it up the tree to retrieve his brother. It did its job quickly, as Gaara was back on his feet in no time.

"Gaara, are you OK?" Temari questioned, relief filling her voice. She was truly happy that her safe place was unharmed. Although she'd been prepared to protect it, she wouldn't've liked it.

"Go…away…" Gaara muttered. His being in the air had given him time to think. He could've easily gotten down, though he'd chosen not to; his sand had been busy protecting him, so he'd had nothing to worry about. He'd used that time to work out his emotional predicament.

"Gaara…" Temari sighed. She was used to his odd behavior, but she'd never really accepted it.

"Why…am I like this?" he asked the air, with genuine hurt in his voice. The emotional strain was obviously too much for him; years of suppressing his emotions had been bound to lead up to it.

Then, without warning, the demon inside Gaara began to act up. Sand poured continuously out of his urn, and completely surrounded the Sand Village ninja.

"Gaara…what's going on? What're you doing?" Kankuro asked curiously. He'd never seen his brother like this, and it was slightly bothering him.

"I…don't know…" Gaara uttered, as the sand stared digging a hole in the ground. The hole just happened to be taking shape in Gaara's vicinity, and was forming around his body. The hole got deeper and deeper, and Gaara went along with it; as it got deeper, he sunk into the soft earth more. Soon, only his head was poking above the ground.

Gaara's brother and sister were stunned. They had no idea what was going on, and the whole event was starting to frighten them.

"H-help…" Gaara managed to say, as he sunk farther into the earth.

His siblings moved to help him, but they were too late. Just as they stuck out their hands to grab him, the sand completely engulfed him, and smoothed over as well, erasing all evidence of the ordeal.

Desperate to save their brother, they reached into the ground where he had disappeared and grasped the only thing they could find. It was soft and string, and they assumed they had grabbed hold of Gaara's hair. They tugged it, and it came out very easily.

"It's just…it's just grass…" Temari said in a dumbfounded tone of voice, as she stared at the large clump of green grass that was sitting in the palm of her hand.

((End of Chapter 1))

Well, my second fanfiction is here! This makes me so happy...I just love to write and see what other people think of it. I know I say that in every fanfiction I write, but it's true! And please, review this thing! I love to know how it's bad, how it's good, how I can improve, and all that other stuff!

I got my laptop earlier this week, so this fanfiction should progress fairly quickly. But keep this in mind: this is a side project until my first Inuyasha fanfiction is complete. It only has a few more chapters, but this could still take a little while to update...I have a case of writer's block at the moment.

Chapter 2 comign soon!

Disclaimer time! I do NOT own Inuyasha or Naruto...just wait for a minute while I sob...all done! Now read! Read to your heart's content!!


	2. The Adventure Begins

Chapter 2

"Where…am I?" Gaara asked the air, as he rubbed his head. As expected, nobody answered. He didn't quite know what had just happened or where he was, but he did know one thing: he wasn't in the Sand Village or his siblings' hideaway any more.

He got to his feet and gazed around. He was in a small clearing, though this one was unlike his team's secret sanctuary. It had tall grass, like it hadn't been used for a long while. Birds' songs filled the air, and there wasn't a soul in sight.

Having absolutely no idea of what he should do, he decided to wander. If he were lucky, he'd think up a plan of action, or find someone who would help him.

((Change of focus))

Kagome, feeling something, held her hand out in front of Inuyasha to stop him. He looked over at her, a confused look on his face.

"Hey guys…what is that?" she asked curiously, though not everybody would know what she was talking about. She felt odd, like something wasn't right.

Inuyasha laughed. "Probably just another wimpy demon, desperate for the Sacred Jewel shards. I could slice 'em up easily," he gloated, as he cracked his fingers like he so often did.

Miroku, feeling this troubling feeling, decided to speak up. "Actually, it's not wimpy at all. At least, so its aura tells me," he corrected.

Sango, not wanting to be left out of the conversation, and feeling it as well, enquired, "How big is it?" If they were to go up against this thing, she wanted to know how powerful it was.

"Very," Miroku answered, his voice showing just the slightest hint of nervousness, "It matches Naraku's in power…and it may even surpass his."

"Mew!" Kirara whined, as she cowered behind Sango's leg. She knew what could happen if they were to find an opponent greater than Naraku, and just the thought scared her.

((Change of focus))

Naraku stopped walking abruptly, Kanna bumping into his backside in the process. "Interesting…" he murmured, as he began to pace the hall, thinking.

"What is it, Master?" Kanna asked in her usual soft voice.

"It has the ability and power…to overthrow and eliminate me. But it is clueless…it could be used to my advantage…to get rid of Inuyasha and obtain the Shikon Jewel shards," he said to himself, taking no notice of Kanna's presence or her question.

Soon enough he noticed her standing there, though, and told the nothingness demon, "We have work to do. Go get Kagura and Kohaku. We're going to get a new pawn."

((Change of focus))

Gaara trekked through the brush, swatting random branches out of his way as he went. He would have had more scratches on him than he'd be able to count, had his sand armour not been protecting him.

He wondered where he was going briefly, and lost his concentration for a split second. In that split second, he tripped over an uprooted tree root, and fell face first into a puddle of thick mud.

"Crap…" he hissed, as he pulled himself out of the dark brown muck and sat up. As he tried to completely remove the mud from his face, he started to think.

With all this strange stuff going on, he realized that his outlook on life was getting dimmer by the hour. It had been dark and dim before, though he was sure that at this moment in time his outlook on life was at one of its lowest lows.

Not wanting to dwell on this fact or the fact that he was still sitting in the mud, he got to his feet and continued on his way. It wasn't long before he came upon a village. He decided to enter, thinking that he'd find someone who could help him.

He roamed the dirt roads aimlessly, avoiding people who stared at him for how he dressed and muttered about him as he passed, until he found a trustworthy looking person.

I have to get out of here…but…I must kill. I live to kill, he thought crazily, trying to fight the urge to take a life. While this battle was raging inside of him, he walked up to the old lady whom he thought could help him.

"Why, hello there, young one. What be ye doing here?" she asked, when she saw the oddly dressed young man standing before her. She could tell by his clothes that he wasn't from anywhere around there.

The lady that Gaara had walked up to was a short old lady with a bit of a hump on her back, and a wooden eye patch over one eye. Gaara took note of these useless facts, just in case, as he attempted to restrain his urge to murder her. He did this not because he'd regret it, but because he needed to find a way out of this place and back to his home.

"Get…me out of here," Gaara hissed evilly at the lady.

"What do ye mean?" the kind old lady asked in response. She had no idea who this odd fellow was, but she couldn't say she had a good feeling about him. Nevertheless, he was a kid in need, and she felt oddly against turning him away; she assumed that he'd been through something traumatizing, and thus was in shock.

"Get me out," he repeated nastily. He strained to keep the demon inside him under control.

Kaede's uneasy feeling was growing. She could sense a demonic aura, although it was very odd. She felt like she was standing right beside it, but the boy in front of her looked like a normal troubled teenager. Despite having a bad feeling about the situation, she decided to help the boy.

"Come. You look…not so good. I'll help you, child," she offered kindly, inviting him into her home.

She ushered him inside, leaving the villagers to their work, and closed the door behind her, as to try to calm the boy down and prevent any unwanted eyes from spying on her strange guest.

((Change of time))

"There ye be, child. Nourishment," Kaede offered, as she held out a freshly made steaming bowl of soup.

Gaara reluctantly took it, and nervously sipped some up. He couldn't kid himself, it tasted great, but he felt that he shouldn't eat it. Eating this delicious soup would calm him down, and he didn't want that to happen; if he were to calm down, his inner demon could easily escape and lash out. He needed answers, so he didn't want to mistakenly go off on a killing spree before he got what he needed.

"Come, child. Eat; it'll help you to relax and make you feel better," Kaede urged, when she saw Gaara doing nothing but staring oddly at his piping hot bowl of soup.

She still had a feeling in her gut that was telling her bad things about the boy, but she foolishly chose to ignore them; she didn't know if the boy was demon or human. She still felt a demonic presence coming from the boy opposite her, but at the same time she didn't. A situation like this had never befallen her in this lifetime, and she honestly wasn't sure what to do.

Then, without any warning at all, Gaara dropped his bowl of broth, which landed on the floor with a soft clunking sound, interrupting Kaede's thoughts. The contents of the bowl poured out over the crackling fire between the old lady and the young man, dousing it and putting it out. Since night had long since fallen, everything went near pitch black.

A shrill scream pierced the night's silence, and then just as fast as it had happened, all was quiet again, though a completely different atmosphere took over the small village.

((Change of time))

Dawn had settled in the village, and the people had started to emerge from their homes to take a gander at what had happened during the night. They'd been too scared to go right away, in the dead of night, and had waited until it was light out, when there'd be less chance of further danger.

"What d'you think happened?" one of the curious elderly villagers asked, as he looked over the scene. A tear slid down his cheek as he looked at the mangled body of his dear friend Kaede.

A crowd had gathered fairly quickly around Kaede's hut, eager to see what had happened to their priestess. She lay beside the smoulders of what had been the fire, in a pool of her own blood.

"I don't know, as is the same with most of you," a knowledgeable young villager pointed out, "But we should probably clean this up before it attracts too many bloodthirsty demons. She's been here like this for half a night, so it's only a matter of time. It's bad enough that we no longer have protection from them."

The crowd followed the young man's suggestion, though only because they didn't want to die at the hands of a ravenous demon, and hauled the old woman's body away from the bloody hut. The grave had already been dug during the night by those who had been daring enough to go outside, those few people knowing that there'd be a casualty or two, and soon they were ready to begin the Death Ceremony.

Kaede had been nicely placed in the soft brown earth, dug beside her sister, and the villagers were ready to burry her, when something that they didn't expect in the least happened.

Kaede's eyes flashed open, and she looked up at the villagers who were looking down at her. She tried to find her voice, but failed slightly. What she did get out was raspy and weak sounding. "What be ye doing to me?" she asked her fellow villagers faintly, as she tried to move. She couldn't; her limbs weren't working in the least, probably broken, and pain spread throughout her beaten and frail body.

The villagers jumped back, aghast at the sound of her voice and some of them almost falling in the pit with her, having expected her to be dead. She had looked the part, and they'd assumed that she'd passed on, neglecting to actually examine the body and determine for sure if she was or not.

The few strong villagers that had just been about to dump heaping piles of earth on Kaede's seemingly dead body immediately tossed the dirt aside, shocked at this sudden turn of events.

"Oh my god! We have to get her out of there!" a young lady cried, the first one to speak. The villagers around her immediately got to work on this task, and soon everyone was lending a hand, be it with pulling her out or with various other tasks.

As the old priestess was being hoisted from what everyone had thought was her final resting place, on of the villagers asked, "Lady Kaede, what happened to you?"

No response came, for before Kaede could answer, she blacked out. She'd lost a lot of blood this past night, and was in no condition to do much of anything. She had known that unconsciousness would claim her, and although she'd fought it off as long as possible, she'd been feeling woozy and dizzy since she'd woken up.

As she rested, the villagers continued to pull her from the massive hole, and made her comfy in a temporary shelter so that she'd be able to heal a little better.

((End of Chapter 2))

Yes, the long awaited next chapter of Ninja in a Demon's World has arrived! Sorry for the wait, guys...seriously, I'm SO sorry. I had a lot of stuff going on, including being a journalist and writing a story that's going to be made into a manga and possibly published, and another manga that's going to be going for at least 10 years. I've been very distracted by these, but I'll try to do better from now on. Really, I will try.

Anyway...lots of focus changes here...that's going to stop fairly soon, aside from checking in on Naruto's world every so often.

Been thinking up more ideas for stories, and lately I've been thinking of original things. But that doesn't mean I won't continue with the fanfictions...it just means that I won't do as many, or you won't see them as often...not going to post the originals on the net, either, because I'm going to try to get a few into the publishing company thing.

Working on two actual mangas now, making me an official manga-ka! that being said, those are taking up most of my time lately. I'm trying to keep up with Ninja in a Demon's World here, though, so hopefully I'll get some more chapters of this done soon. I'm posting the mangas on on my account there. I forget what the link is right now, but in the notes at the end of the next chapter I'll tell you where to go in case you want to check it out.

Anyway, that's all for now. Next chapter'll be up next week, promise! Really, it's pretty much done now, and I only have to put the finishing touches on it.

Chapter 3 coming very soon to a fanfiction near you!


	3. The Hunt is On

Chapter 3

"NYAAA! Why won't you leave me alone?" Gaara shouted to the heavens in frustration and rage, "I could have used that woman! What the hell do you want from me?"

As soon as he had injured Kaede, he'd fled the village. He had gotten as far away as he could, as to evade any raging villagers and find other means of help. He figured that the people of the previous village wouldn't want to help a killer, and that he'd probably end up killing them as well.

Having nowhere else to go, and still not knowing a thing about where he was stranded, he leaned against a blossoming sakura tree. He stayed there for a long while, trying to figure out what he should do. Eventually, out of exhaustion and an overwhelming feeling of anger, he fell asleep.

((change of focus))

"Inuyasha, there's something you should know about this thing we're chasing," Kagome said, as she bounced up and down on the half-demon's back with every step he took.

"What is it?" Inuyasha answered, glancing up over his shoulder at Kagome. All of a sudden she seemed tense. He didn't slow down to talk to her face-to-face, though; he instead sped up, urging the others to do the same. He knew that if Kagome was tense, they had to be nearing something dangerous.

"Well…hmm…how should I put this…" the teenage girl muttered, trying to find the right words. She wanted to say this in a way that Inuyasha would understand and remember.

"Just spit it out! We don't have time for this," said Inuyasha nastily. Knowing that something bad was going on somewhere, he felt that he didn't have time to wait for her to do stuff like that.

"You know how I said that this thing may be stronger than Naraku? I'm sure of it now; even with it's enormous aura, it's not using any jewel shards at all, which means it must be super powerful," she explained, "That aura is the real deal, and it's not using any method of boosting its powers."

"Kagome…you must be right," Miroku answered. He knew that she could sense Shikon Jewel shards from a distance, and this thing's aura placed it fairly close to their current position.

"Well then, maybe this one'll actually be strong enough to put up a decent fight. I haven't met a bastard that could do that for a while…" Inuyasha gloated, as he continued on. He liked being the strongest of the group.

Despite the half-demon's belief in himself, though, everyone else was quite frankly getting sick and tired of his cockiness. Shippo, as usual in response to this kind of Inuyasha's behaviour, was the first to speak up. "Inuyasha, you're getting overconfident again," he teased, "That means that you're going to lose if you fight."

"Shuddup. I'm not going to loose to some lowlife demon like this, not in my lifetime," Inuyasha growled. Very soon, Shippo's head was home to a few dozen shiny red lumps.

"Inuyasha…" the fox demon moaned, as he rubbed his aching head.

With a crack of his fingers Inuyasha said smugly, "That's what you get for doubting me. You think you could do a better job of defeating this thing than me?"

"N-n-n-no! S-sorry, Inuyasha!" Shippo stuttered, as he climbed up onto Kagome's shoulder to get out of the half-demon's reach, should he decide to beat the fox demon child further.

Very soon the group was nearing Kaede's village, for they sensed that both Kaede's spiritual shield and the one they were tracking, which meant it had to have passed through there. When they entered their suspicions were confirmed, and they didn't at all like what they saw.

Yet again, something had happened in the village to put it into a chaotic type of state.

Villagers ran amuck, unsure of what they should do. Buildings were destroyed, and mayhem ruled the streets. Whatever had caused this to happen had done quite some damage on its way out.

Knowing that Kaede would most likely have a bit of knowledge as to what had gone down here recently, they decided to seek her out to question her. They hoped to obtain some information that would allow them to know their new opponent better, to find and defeat the being that had brought about this madness.

In the streets they came across a farmer who was randomly running toward them; they pulled him aside to talk to him. They saw that he was an elderly man, though they didn't care at all. Or rather, Inuyasha didn't care. They needed to know where Kaede was, and now.

"Hey old man, where's Kaede?" Inuyasha snarled softly, as he took the man by the collar of his shirt and held him in the air.

Kagome was about to tell Inuyasha off and to treat the man with respect when she looked into his eyes. Oddly, she felt unable to do much of anything.

The man, who was clearly in shock over what had happened, gave a stuttered reply, "K-Kaede…she's i-in her h-hut. S-she's been attacked!" His voice fluctuated with fear, cracking in some places.

"Fine. Get to a safe place, just in case," Inuyasha said, tossing the frail old farmer aside. He and the rest of the gang power walked away from the man, who was now slightly crumpled on the ground, feeling something upsetting in their guts.

The look that had been swimming around in that old guy's eyes was a troubling one, to say the least. Those wide eyes had depicted a great deal of pain and fear, and had seen things that some people would say are unthinkable; he'd been one of the few that had been out when the attack had happened. The look in the guy's eyes alone made everyone's guts churn, and sent shivers running up and down their spines.

But they tried to shake off this feeling of dread that the old man had instilled in them, for fear clouded the mind and would make their mission even harder than it already was.

Although people crowded the roads of the village and there were small clusters of destruction, the group found it Kaede fairly easily. Because her hut was destroyed, she was being sheltered in the house of the caretaker that looked over Kikyo's shrine.

After arriving at her destroyed hut and being redirected to her new location only once, they arrived at the small house on the hill. The man of the house kindly let them inside, and there they saw the priestess. Multiple young ladies, who must have been medics-in-training, tended to her bandages and wounds, which seemed to be many.

"Oh my god! Kaede, what happened to you?" Kagome blurted when she set eyes on the woman. True, she did look horrible; bandages covered her arms and legs, as well as most of her torso, and she was burned and swollen in the few places where her skin was visible.

"Kagome…Inuyasha…come here, all of ye," replied the aging woman, as she attempted to move her hand to beckon them. The ladies tending to her wounds noticed this small and effortful movement, and gave the group a bit of privacy.

"Old hag, you haven't answered Kagome's question yet. What the hell happened to you?" Inuyasha said as he moved forward, repeating what Kagome had asked, though in a much ruder way.

Knowing that Inuyasha wouldn't let her rest until she answered the question and explained what had happened, she told the small group before her the tale that she had told the villagers only hours earlier.

((Change in focus))

Gaara's eyes slowly opened, and eh shook away the remnants of his slumber.

As soon as he was fully awake, he was also on high alert. He still had no idea of where he was, or of the dangers that this place contained. He beat himself up inside for letting his guard down and falling asleep; it had left him completely vulnerable and out in the open.

But he knew that beating himself up and staying there any longer would give his enemies a chance to catch him, which wouldn't help his current situation any, so he decided to hit the road again.

He felt that the sand demon harboured inside of him had calmed down a great deal, though he still didn't want to return to the village that the retched demon had made him wreak havoc in. He'd just have to find another place to stay, and different people to get answers from.

He was ready to start walking randomly to wherever his feet would take him, and was just about to do so, when something happened that made him change his mind.

"Boy," a voice called to him from a short distance away, "Come here, I have an…offer for you."

The deep voice sounded sinister and evil, but Gaara didn't seem to care. This was one of the few times in his life when someone wanted him, and it was a vital time no less.

Without thinking he followed the voice that continued to call to him. His reasoning for this sudden random and not-well-thought-out act: he needed help and this person wanted him. It was a win/win situation.

((Change of focus))

"And that be what happened," Kaede concluded. After talking for about an hour or so, she was finally done telling the story of the villages recent and upsetting events. What Inuyasha and the gang learned was troubling, to be sure, but it would help them a lot on this new quest of theirs.

"Wow…it's like a full demon in a human's body…like a new kind of half-demon," Sango marvelled, thinking of how dangerous that would be, "But are you sure that this boy wasn't just possessed?"

Kaede shook her head solemnly, "No, my child. He had control for the most part, and definitely had a clear connection with his human self."

"Damn. This idiot must be making a mockery of me…I'm gunna clobber this guy!" Inuyasha said hotly, completely missing Kaede's point and thinking of himself as usual.

Kagome, who hadn't missed the point, said to the group, "Guys, I don't think this creature is from here. We've never encountered anything like this, be it here or in my time."

Miroku thought for a moment, then added to Kagome's statement, "I think you may be right, Kagome, but exactly what is it, and where did it really come from if it's not from here?"

"I honestly couldn't tell you that," Kagome admitted, then quickly added, "Yet. I'm sure that soon we'll be able to figure it out, if we hunt this thing down."

"Mew. Mew!" Kirara noted, as she looked up at Inuyasha with big eyes.

"Yeah, Kirara's right. You'll have to fight him to find out, Inuyasha…if it did this to Kaede just because she offered him soup, just imagine what it'll do when we start to ask it all these questions!" Shippo said, nodding in agreement with the cat demon's comment.

"Heh. I could go for that…haven't had a good fight in a while," Inuyasha smiled, as he thought of how he could possibly decimate his enemy.

And with that they bade farewell to Kaede, leaving her to recover and become healthy again. Wanting to get more answers, they went off in search of this new kind of demon that they were sure was from another place and time, and quite possibly world. Kagome especially thought it could be from another world; when traveling back in time was possible, anything was.

Little did they know, they were going to meet him sooner than they expected.

((End of Chapter 3))

Well, chapter 3 is now done, and ready for your viewing pleasures. For once with this fanfiction, this chapter is actually up on time! I'm tired of having chapters come up late, and will try desperately to keep it regular. Though...it will be easier said than done, becaue I am now working on two manga, and 2 fanfictions...I'll try to keep it updated every Monday, though, don't worry.

Now, as for this chapter...I kinda like it. I like the next one a bit more, though...you'll find out why next week.

Anyway, I'm still really having fun with this. Writing is still fun for me, even though it's my job...if it wasn't fun, I think I'd quite those jobs so that I could make it fun again, because writing is my life it seems.

I'm going to stop bothering you now with these boring author's notes now, and say this: Stay tuned for the next chapter, due out next week!


	4. Only the Beginning

Chapter 4

Inuyasha looked around, his ears perked and his nose sniffing the air. He was determined to discover where this new opponent was, what he was, where he came from, everything about him.

Seeing as Inuyasha had been teased and tormented because of what he was when he was younger, he didn't take kindly to creatures that posed as half-demons. He wanted to put an end to this poser's life, for even thought they had never met, Inuyasha's mind was being flooded with sad memories from his childhood.

Still, he was taking this a little too far.

"Damn. Can't seem to find this brat's scent out here," Inuyasha pouted, as he lowered his head for the first time in a long while.

"Inuyasha…" Kagome started.

"NOT NOW!" Inuyasha growled; he was really worked up about this new half-demon business.

In the nearly destroyed village they had easily found this thing's scent, though they followed it very closely, it seemed to dissipate as they got further from the village. This only made Inuyasha's mood darker and his temper more liable to snap.

"INUYASHA!" Kagome yelled fiercely, not giving up on trying to get his attention. She had something to say, and she wanted a decent chance to speak.

It worked. Inuyasha, as well as the rest of the group, stopped whatever it was they were doing and turned to listen to the teenage girl.

"Well, um…I think we may have passed where he was last…" she said, as she nervously rubbed the back of her neck, "He was at that tree not too long ago, and apart from there, all traces have faded and disappeared." She pointed to the tree she was talking about as she said it, a blossoming sakura tree.

Miroku snooped around and found that she was indeed right. At the base of the tree were the remnants of the same powerful aura that had led them there, and Inuyasha found that the scent was there as well. And as she had said, in any other place it was either weaker or nonexistent.

"She's right…and there seem to be signs of another aura as well. It's powerful, though the one we're tracking surpasses it. But both are powerful…powerful enough to shield each other. This new half-demon thing may be being sheltered by the other," he concluded, a thoughtful look on his face.

In everyone's brains, it instantly clicked. This other aura belonged to Naraku; it was all too familiar. Naraku was going to try to suck this new opponent into his legion of evil, and use him to destroy Inuyasha and the gang, or something along those lines.

Inuyasha's annoyance at the world vanished. He knew that anger like that would only cloud his thinking in a situation like this or any other, in a similar way that fear did, come time for a fight. And knowing Naraku, that fight would be upon them sometime soon. It was only a matter of time.

But that didn't mean that they gave up on tracking the boy. On the off chance that the evil half-demon Naraku hadn't yet captured him, it was possible that they could save him.

The continued to walk through the grassy area, but no matter where they went or how hard they searched, the scent and aura both faded. Around that blossoming sakura tree the clues were most prominent, while everywhere else they were virtually non-existent.

"He's just…disappeared…" Sango muttered curiously, being completely confused. Things didn't vanish into thin air, much less humans and demons, though the one they were hunting seemed to have done just that.

"Mew mew," Kirara agreed.

"It's no use, I'm sure of it now," the perverted monk said sadly, as he hanged his head, "I'm sure Naraku is hiding him. It's the only explanation."

Shippo shivered. He was trying to hope for the best, but his thoughts were wandering, and were showing him visions of the worst. A whimper made its way through his throat.

"Shippo, suck it up. We've faced worse enemies than this," Inuyasha snapped, as he bopped the fox demon on the head. Not only did he do this to comfort Shippo, but also to reassure himself; doubt was making its way into his mind.

((Change of focus))

"Such extraordinary power…" Naraku mumbled loudly, as he paced the small room of the castle, "And so many possibilities…"

Naraku had brought Gaara back to his newly taken castle for safe keeping while he thought of what to do with him, and until he thought of said plan, he planned to keep the boy there. Gaara didn't seem to mind, though; the accommodations were OK for future allies.

"Yeah, so what're we going to do with him?" Kagura asked. She was sure she knew the type of thing her master wanted to do with Gaara, but she wanted to hear it for herself. Although she hated her master's guts with a passion, his many plans and schemes seemed to intrigue her.

Naraku, however, wasn't about to let this traitor in on his secret plan. With her rebellious behaviour lately, he knew that she couldn't be trusted with such top-secret information as this.

He whipped around to face the wind demon and said nastily, "That's not for you to know. Now leave, and send in the boy."

Kagura turned on her heel and began to stride away to obey her master's orders when Naraku said something to end the conversation for good, just in case, and to instil a bit of fear into his unfaithful servant.

"And speak of this to nobody, or you will very soon cease to exist."

((Change of focus))

Kagome sighed as she gazed into the endless sky, wondering what on earth was going on, and what awaited her in the near future.

They had been attempting to locate this new potential opponent for some time, though to no prevail. They'd found nothing, not even the slightest trace of a hint or clue to his whereabouts. They were just as lost as they had been when they'd begun this frantic search.

Now they were resting and preparing for a well needed and deserved meal. Everyone had a job to do before they could feast on the spoils that Kagome had brought from the future, and they each set out to do it quickly, their bellies rumbling with hunger.

Miroku was starting the fire that would boil the water that would cook Inuyasha's instant ramen; Sango and Kirara were out checking up on Kaede and getting updates on what was happening in the village, for they weren't too far from there; Shippo had set up the blanket they'd be eating on, and was now resting his eyes; Inuyasha was getting ready for the fight that he knew would come; and Kagome, who was waiting to set out the food she'd cooked, was sitting under the same tree that Gaara had rested under only a day earlier.

So many things were going on, and most everyone was busy doing something. Though since not everyone was ready to ear and Kagome was finished her task of preparing the food, which she had done before she entered the well that day, she had a bit of free time on her hands.

Wanting to relax after hours of hectic non-stop searching, Kagome closed her eyes and willed herself to sleep. It failed to work, of course, with all the nasty and disturbing thoughts that were running through her head. Inuyasha's very loud ranting didn't help either. So instead she just gazed up at the cloudless blue yonder, wondering everything there was to wonder about the one they were attempting to track.

"Hey, guys, is dinner ready yet? Oh, and Kaede says 'hi', and that she's doing just fine. Nothing much going on over there, besides repairs and the like," Sango said, announcing that she and Kirara were back and ready for some food.

Kagome, now aware of their presence, replied happily as she rummaged through her bag, "We'll be done in just a minute. Just have to cook something and set it all up!"

((Change of time))

"OK guys, dig in!" Kagome announced, as everyone seated himself or herself around the fair-sized clothe that Kagome had laid all the food out on. They were starved, and it showed; Inuyasha didn't even stop to beg for his instant ramen.

Despite the array of food, the meal didn't last long.

The vast amount of assorted foods quickly vanished, an one by one the members of the group finished their meals. Belches could be heard from the boys, mostly Inuyasha, for a few minutes afterwards, as everyone relaxed after a hard day's work.

"Kagome, I'll help you clean up, if you want!" Shippo offered, as Kagome began to pack up all the dishes and things back into her insanely large backpack. Everyone was off doing his or her own thing again, leaving Kagome to clean up as usual.

"Thanks, Shippo, that would be really nice of you," Kagome accepted happily, a big smile on her face.

Shippo got right to work on his task, and rolled up the picnic blanket as his friend cleared it. All was going well, until he reached the middle of the blanket.

He slid his hand underneath the cloth to roll that section up with the rest of it, and felt something odd brush up against his hand. He immediately took his hand away from under the blanket in fear of what he'd just touched, not knowing what it was.

"H-hey, Kagome…what's under this th-thing?" he squeaked, as a shiver ran up and down his spine. Kagome halted what she was doing to take a gander at what was scaring Shippo so much, and to comfort him as well.

She took a part of the blanket in her hand and slowly lifted it away from the ground. Sure enough, there was something under it. It hadn't been there before, or at least, neither she nor Shippo had seen it when the fox demon set up the blanket in the first place.

Hiding under the blanket was a small patch of sand. Kagome was sure she hadn't seen it before, as was Shippo. It wasn't just any ordinary sand, though; it was alive.

Kagome cringed. Just the sight of this thing, with its soft but steady pulsating, was giving her a major case of the creeps, and not to mention she had a bad feeling about it. Nevertheless, she thought that it might be a long awaited clue, and was curious as to what it was doing there, and couldn't contain the urge to touch the odd sand. Her hand inched nearer to it as she reached out to poke it.

Quite unexpectedly, the small mound of sand reacted. As Kagome's outstretched finger got closer to it, the sand started to wiggle and squirm, and as she progressed, it got more violent. Soon it was shaking so much it almost wasn't visible with the naked eye.

Then, as quickly as it's little fit of bizarre shaking had begun, it stopped. Kagome didn't, though, and continued to slowly move her hand toward it.

The instant she was close enough to actually touch it, the sand lashed out. It wanted to protect itself, and was acting on its master's orders as well, and the sand lunged at Kagome's approaching hand. It successfully made contact, and spread itself over the surface of her hand.

((End of chapter 4))

Woo! Cliffhanger!! Mwhahahahahahahahahaha!

Now, on to more important matters of buisness... Working on a few other projects now, which I will list below. Getting published as an actual writer (not manga writer this time) at around the end of January...so that's pretty cool.

Oh yeah, and happy Thanksgiving! Hope you all had a wonderful turkey (or in my case ham) dinner! Yum...just thinking about it makes my mouth water.

So I'm working on The Art of Revenge (invader zim, 5 chapters), Pimp my schoolbus (pimp my ride, barely started), The City Unreal (original to get published, 1 chapter), this (naruto, on the 5th chapter), and some random other things as well. As you can see, I have a lot going on right now, especially if you add school, work, and now cadets on top of that.

Anyway, I think that's all for now. Next chapter is kind of interresting, has a few neat twists in it.

Stay tuned for chapter 5, due out next week!


	5. Evil Revealed

Chapter 5

Kagome let loose a shrill shriek of pain as the sand suddenly tightened around her hand. She tried to shake it off, but failed miserably at the task. Not wanting the intense pain to continue, she desperately tried another mediocre plan.

Using her other hand as a shovel-type device, she tried to scrape the sand off her skin. That plan didn't work either; the sand merely detached a part of itself to attack Kagome's aiding hand.

The sand continued to contract against her skin, squeezing her hands harder and harder. It was relentless, and showed the girl no mercy in its painful attack. Kagome struggled as hard as she could to get away from the murderous sand, for at this point she was in excruciating pain.

"Kagome!" Shippo called out, wanting desperately to help his friend. He really did want to help her, but he was scared stiff, and could barely move. He stared on in horror.

Kagome took no notice of Shippo's calling; she was in too much pain to notice much of anything at the moment.

Soon her hands couldn't possibly hold out any longer, and a sickening cracking sound filled the girl's ears. She immediately knew that something was horribly wrong; she couldn't feel her hands and the pain was almost more than she could handle.

The sand finally loosened its grip on her hands, and fell to the ground to slink to the nearby trees. Kagome, though tears blurred his vision, stared at the damage that had been done to her hands. It was pretty extensive, and made her hands completely useless, not to mention the sight was very unpleasant to look at.

Blood covered her hands, and all her fingers were twisted in odd ways, completely limp. Every bone in both of her hands was broken, rendering her unable to do much of anything on her own.

"KAGOME!" Inuyasha hollered, as he ran toward her. Her battle with the sand had been fairly quiet until she'd shrieked in pain, at which point Inuyasha had become aware of it and rushed to her rescue. Unfortunately, though, he was too late to be of any help battle-wise.

Tears made rivers down Kagome's cheeks; the pain was at a degree where she couldn't utter anything but short whimpers. Shippo stood there, clearly in shock, for it had all happened so fast.

Inuyasha caught sight of her slumped on the ground, and began to run faster, all the while yelling at the top of his lungs, "KAGOME!"

He soon got to her, and when he saw her hands, he became infuriated. Immediately he turned to Shippo for answers, seeing that Kagome was in no shape to talk.

That plan, Inuyasha soon realized, was futile. Shippo too was so shaken he could barely move, let alone talk in complete sentences. Typical Shippo.

He didn't want to use Kagome like he was about to, but he needed to know what had done this to her, and she was the only one there that could do that; as hurt as she was, she was the only one who had witnessed the attack that still had the ability to help him.

"Kagome. Where did the attacker go to?" he whispered in a comforting yet hastened way. He needed to know so he could get revenge for what they'd done to his Kagome.

Though she was shaken and in pain, she knew that Inuyasha wouldn't stop until he caught the guy who had put her through so much pain. She wanted to help him, and also wanted revenge for herself, even though she wasn't in any condition to do so.

With this in mind she lifted her hand to point in the direction the sand had gone. That failed miserably, though, seeing as every bone in her hand was broken. When she attempted to point, her hand merely fell, causing her even more pain.

Inuyasha got the idea. Although she couldn't physically point him to her attacker, her attempts to do so told him enough. He got up, not wanting to leave her alone but also wanting to give this person his just deserts.

He growled and strode to the trees, his anger getting the best of him. With hatred in his voice he yelled so that whoever was hiding in the cover of the trees could hear, "Get out here and face me, damn it! There'll be hell to pay for what you did to Kagome!"

There was a good-sized pause, and at the end of said pause a boy stepped out from the cover of the forest. Inuyasha, who was expecting to see something along the lines of a demon or at least something a little more menacing, was slightly shocked to be looking at a young boy.

He had bright red hair, which half hid a scar above his left eye. He had on an outfit that made Inuyasha certain that he wasn't from this time or place. Strapped to his back was an odd looking gourd, apparently filled with sand.

"Did you do this to Kagome?" Inuyasha burst, not thinking that the boy had. He just needed to confirm his thinking so that he could move on and find the real culprit.

The boy looked up at the half-demon, a sinister look in his eyes. He hissed coldly, "Yes, I did."

That bit of news caught Inuyasha off guard. A bit shocked, he ran in a blind rage at the boy, aiming to attack. Tetsusiaga held firmly in his hand, he yelled, "Wind Scar!"

The boy, Gaara, had very few times witnessed something like this. He needn't worry about getting hit by the attack, however; his sand would make sure of that.

The attack died down momentarily, and when it did so Inuyasha saw quite a sight. A tall tower of sand had formed around Gaara, protecting him from the half-demon's attack. The sand soon fell away, revealing the boy.

"Such power…but a kind of jutsu that I've never seen before…how does he do it?" Gaara pondered quietly so that no one else could hear. It stumped him, for his opponent didn't even have to use the standard hand signs to make his attack work.

"Damn, how's he controlling that sand?" Inuyasha muttered, just as confused as Gaara. Not knowing what to do, he continued to dish out the attacks, hoping that at least one of them would make contact.

As could be expected against someone like Gaara, the attacks did nothing. They merely wasted time and energy as Inuyasha tried to think up a better plan. While he was busy attempting to get to Gaara, he unfortunately didn't notice the activity that was going on behind him.

He snapped out of his nearly blind attacking spree when he heard Miroku and Sango calling his name. It sounded like they were desperate.

"Inuyasha! Inuyasha!" Miroku called, only just entering the scene. He didn't know exactly what was going on, but he knew that it wasn't good at all.

Inuyasha turned, and immediately knew what was wrong. Naraku, his mortal enemy, had snuck up on Kagome while he'd been busy attacking the boy, obviously proceeding with yet another evil plan for world domination.

There was no doubt about it; Naraku was using Gaara to get what he wanted, and so far his plan was being executed perfectly. He'd used the boy's overwhelming aura to mask his own, gotten him to buy some time, and he now had an advantage.

"Naraku! What the hell do you want?" Inuyasha growled, stepping toward him. His opponent didn't seem to have any interest in attacking, and had merely been biding some time.

"Want? I've already gotten what I came for, thanks to Gaara here. In exchange for shelter and what he calls understanding, he's given me a helping hand. He was causing quite a bit of trouble before I found him," the evil half-demon laughed.

It took a moment for that statement to sink in, but when it did everyone came to the same realization. They had suspected it to be true beforehand, but this confirmed it.

Miroku was the first to speak, "So, that's the thing Kaede told us about, am I correct?" I had thought as much, but this makes me certain of it."

"Yes, I heard he did wreak a bit of havoc in that area, "Naraku chuckled, "And now that I have no more use for him, he can get back to doing whatever he likes."

At that point Gaara looked up, a slightly confused look in his eyes. He'd thought that Naraku would let him stay with him longer if he continued to be of service. He didn't want to be forced back out into this world alone, where he had a very good chance of acting out again. With Naraku, he felt safe.

"But master Naraku…" Gaara muttered sadly. Although he wanted to object, he knew by the look in the evil half-demon's eyes that he wasn't kidding; he was really going to abandon him.

"Shut it, whelp," Naraku ordered, not wanting to put up with him. Gaara fell silent as he was commanded, leaving Naraku to deal with the others as he wished.

"Naraku, why not me? You easily could have killed me while I was distracted!" Inuyasha asked gruffly, still not quite understanding. He was almost at the point of being desperate, almost about to offer himself to save Kagome.

"That was my original plan, but I decided that this" – he pointed to his hostage, Kagome – "would work just as well. If it hadn't been for the monk and demon slayer, you'd be dead right now and I still would have the girl," he said coldly.

Sango, who had been standing on the sidelines with Miroku, revealed what she had deduced was his plan. "Since he couldn't get Inuyasha and Kagome, he decided to go only for the next best thing; eyes that can detect Jewel Shards!" she hypothesized for everyone to hear.

"Your reasoning is quite accurate," Naraku said with a laugh. He was mocking them, like they couldn't do anything to change the fate that he had set up for them.

"You bastard! Give her back now!" Inuyasha yelled fiercely, almost losing control. Although he wanted that to happen more than anything, though, he knew that Naraku wouldn't give up so easily.

"Oh, I can't do that, worthless half-demon. As the demon slayer said just a moment ago, I need her eyes," he denied, a matter-of-factly tone to his voice.

Kagome tried to scream for help, not wanting to be taken away by Naraku, but her call never reached the ears of her companions. The barrier that the villain had erected around her to prevent her from escaping seemed to be soundproof.

Inuyasha couldn't bear to see Kagome like that. Though he couldn't hear her cries for help, he could see that she was trying desperately to be heard. She truly didn't want to fall into Naraku's clutches, to be forced to do his evil bidding.

He stepped forward, aiming to stage a rescue attempt, but he was randomly stopped by Gaara. Before abandoning him, Naraku had given him one last set of orders; prevent Inuyasha from getting to the evil villain, and kill him.

"Ah, that won't be necessary," Naraku taunted, seeing how desperate he was. He started to back away, making his escape, and continued, "As a parting gift, I think I'll have Gaara destroy you all. Then there will be nothing to stand in my way."

With a cold chuckle he rose up into the air on an air current that Kagura, who was hidden somewhere that nobody could see, created. The bubble that contained Kagome followed behind him, leaving Inuyasha and the others to fight for their lives.

::end of Chapter 5::

Wow, I finally got this chapter done! Had some major blocks with it...but I think I'm good for the time being. So, now you know (or think you know) what's going to happen! Yay for you:D

Anyway, I can tell you there's going to be a few twists coming up, so don't assume too much, OK? Umm...I really can't think of much else to say right now. Other projects doing fine, thinking up some new ideas, stuff like that. Oh! I joined cadets, so that'll most likely further cut down my writing time, but I think it'll be worth it. When I'm done highschool I'm going to go to Japan to teach english, so I have to know leadership and all that, and I also get to do lots of fun things with cadets as well!

I'll going to leave it at that, I think. Until next time, keep reading and...stuff!

Chapter 6 coming in more or less two weeks! Stay tuned!


	6. Unimaginable Power

Chapter 6

Inuyasha attempted to break through Gaara's sand in order to rescue his beloved Kagome, but he wasn't able to. The sand was much harder than it looked, and wouldn't give an inch.

He whipped around to face Gaara and yelled, desperation in his voice, "Move the damn sand you idiot! I have to get to Kagome before Naraku uses her!"

Gaara laughed coldly, "Naraku won't allow that. I'm your opponent now, so face me in a fight. Unless you'd rather die, of course…but that's going to happen either way, I suppose…"

"Damn…" Inuyasha murmured, then raised his voice so Gaara could hear him clearly, "Naraku's not controlling you, is he? If he's not, then why the hell are you doing this? Can't you think for yourself…make your own decisions?"

He was desperate, and would try almost anything to get away from this guy. Kagome was the only thing on his mind right now, an overwhelming need to get her out of evil's hands.

"He took me in when everyone else thought I was a monster. I'm repaying my debt," he said calmly, though there was a tinge of sourness and sadness in his voice. He hadn't expected Naraku to abandon him, and certainly not this soon. He still thought he could be of service.

"I wonder why! You destroyed half a village and nearly killed its priestess! They have good reason to think you a monster and say such things," Miroku said, making a very good point.

"No…" Gaara muttered, clutching his head. All of a sudden he seemed to be in great pain, as if he was trying to make some massive headache go away.

Inuyasha sighed. He knew that the only was this guy would let him leave was if he defeated him in a fight, and so intended to give him one. He wanted to save Kagome no matter what it took.

"Fine, then let's get started. I need to finish you quick," Inuyasha said confidently, giving in slightly. He steadied his Tetsusiaga in his hands and got into a battle stance, ready to fight.

"Yes…let's…" Gaara said coldly in agreement, apparently over his random headache-thing. Before Inuyasha had much of a chance to react, he put into effect a series of hand signs, thus starting the battle.

He manipulated the sand, and it stretched through the air at a very high speed toward the half-demon. Inuyasha barely had time to react and the attack nearly hit its target. If he'd lunged out of the way just a second later, he would surely have been skewered, if not severely injured.

"He's fast…" Sango gaped, as she watched the sand whip back and forth, trying to land a hit on Inuyasha.

Inuyasha continued to dodge the fierce attacks that were being launched at him, though every time it was only by the slightest of distances. He was fighting a losing battle, and was beginning to realize that. This realization, however, only boosted his determination and will to fight; if he didn't win, he'd never be able to rescue Kagome from Naraku's clutches.

"RYAA!" Inuyasha cried with vigour, as he leaped back away from yet another attack. With a glint of determination in his eyes he held his Tetsusiaga at the ready, waiting for Gaara's next attack.

It came just as he predicted, and when he saw it he let out a short laugh. His plan was falling right into place, and he figured this fight was as good as done.

"You're finished, you bastard…Backlash Wave!" he yelled, just as Gaara's hit was about to make contact. This was his trump card and he was, at that moment, confident that he would emerge the victor in this fight.

Luck, however, didn't seem to be on his side that day. Although the attack usually proved to be effective, against this opponent it was rendered the exact opposite: useless.

A little too late, Inuyasha discovered that his attacks weren't going to work.

The sand powered past him, grazing his side. He grunted in pain, now realizing that although it looked like normal sand, it was unbelievably sharp. He flew back from the force of the blow, landing with a thump on the ground.

"D-damn…" Inuyasha muttered, clutching his side and getting up. His head was lowered, recovering and concentrating on not feeling the pain. While he was in the process of shaking off the blow, Gaara took that opportunity to launch another attack.

"Inuyasha!" Shippo cried, now a little less shaken up. He was the sand heading directly toward Inuyasha, and he knew he had to do something. For one of the first times in his life, Shippo made himself be brave to save a friend.

Inuyasha looked up to see the sand flying at him. He didn't have time to react, and he knew it.

While running for Inuyasha, Shippo yelled "Transform!" and was very soon a giant shield, placed nicely in front of the half-demon so he was protected from the sand.

Inuyasha, not wanting the little fox demon to get hurt, was about to say something in protest or toss him away. But it was too late; the sand powered on, clashing with Shippo. Shippo cried out in pain, the sand piercing him, traveling through his gut.

When the sand retracted Shippo transformed back into his normal form, slumping to the ground. He laid there unconscious, blood spilling from his possibly fatal wound. For once in his life he'd taken a great risk to save a friend. And if someone didn't do something soon, he'd die because of his act of kindness.

Inuyasha knew this, and knew that to repay his debt he'd have to at least try to save the childish fox demon. He bent down, cringing slightly from the pain of own wound, and was about to pick Shippo up to carry him to safety when something whizzed past his head.

He looked up to see Sango's boomerang flying through the air, fending off yet another attack from Gaara, though just barely.

"Inuyasha, hurry! I don't know how long this will stall him, so you have to get him away from here!" Sango called, as she threw her boomerang again.

The attack had worked the first time, having caught Gaara off guard. He hadn't been expecting an attack from the two on the sidelines. He was now aware of them, however, and easily stopped the rest of Sango's boomerang attacks.

Inuyasha stalled, slightly stunned by everything that was going on. Shippo risking his life, Sango suddenly helping him, Gaara's relentless attacks; it was all happening so fast, he wasn't quite sure of what he should do. Sango's voice, now sounding quite stressed, broke his random train of thought.

"Inuyasha, take Shippo and GO!" she yelled fiercely, as she rummaged through the contents underneath her shoulder pad. She'd almost completely given up on her boomerang at that point, knowing that it would be of no use to her against this opponent.

Inuyasha, now that he had returned to reality, went right to work on getting Shippo to safety. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to complete his task without getting killed, that is, until Sango lent him another helping hand to provide some cover.

With a soft popping sound, a smoke bomb exploded close to Gaara, making him unable to see Inuyasha's getaway. This bought the half-demon the time he so needed to hopefully save Shippo from a fate that included death.

He got a good distance from the scene of the battle and carefully placed Shippo down on a soft patch of grass. After he attempted to patch up his wound, he knew he couldn't do anything more for the little guy for the time being, so he got up and started to walk back to help Sango and Miroku.

As he was on his way back to the clearing, something seemed to tighten around his ankle. He didn't give a second thought to the odd feeling, and merely shook his foot to get it off of him. He still didn't know exactly how Kagome had been done in, and just thought that he'd gotten tangled up in a random vine.

Thinking all was well (or as well as it could get at the moment) he continued to walk back to the others. But along the way he felt the strange tightening sensation return. This time, instead of disregarding it, he glanced down at his leg to see what it was.

Wrapped around the base of his leg was a good amount of sand, slowly tightening around his ankle. At that point he knew that he was in trouble, for the sand was being manipulated so that Gaara could kill him.

"Damn it all to hell!" he growled, now running to where the battle was taking place. He figured that if he tried to manually take it off, he'd end up like Kagome, with his hands completely useless. And if he wanted any chance at all of winning this epic fight, he'd most definitely need his hands.

He entered the scene to see Sango still fighting Gaara off, with Miroku now attempting to help by her side as well, using his sacred sutras. They seemed to be failing, though, for they seemed to do nothing but burn up harmlessly on contact with the red-haired boy and his sand.

Miroku noticed Inuyasha's return, and immediately knew that something was wrong. The half-demon was limping badly, grimacing in pain slightly every so often, and not to mention he had a big ring of sand wrapped around his ankle. He knew that if any of them wanted to stay alive, he'd have to save his friend, for he had the best chance of defeating the foe.

"Inuyasha, hold on tight to something! Quick!" he yelled, turning to face him.

Inuyasha turned to see what was the matter, and saw that look of determination on Miroku's face. It was the one that said he was about to do something harmful, despite the consequences.

Once Inuyasha had grabbed hold to a nearby sturdy-looking tree, he put his plan into action. He had to do it quick, before the odd boy knew what was happening. Ripping off the cloth on his right hand he yelled, "Wind Tunnel!"

Inuyasha's feet lifted off the ground, the suction of the black hole attempting to pull him in. He held on tight to the tree trunk he was nearest, though, even when it began to bend under the pressure being put on it. It felt to Inuyasha like it was about to snap and send him tumbling into endless blackness when the wind suddenly ceased.

Inuyasha fell to the ground, gravity returning to claim him. As he landed with a thump he saw out of the corner of his eye Miroku drop to the ground as well, hurrying to get the cloth back around his hand before he caused too much mayhem. Soon after he kneeled on the ground, nearly as still as stone.

He clutched his wrist, which was already slightly discoloured. His veins bulged just the slightest big, and a few drops of sweat fell from his brow. He seemed unable to move, crippled on the ground. When the monk was in such a state like that, it could only mean one thing; he'd been poisoned.

Inuyasha quickly glanced at his own leg, seeing no sand there whatsoever. That settled it; whatever this sand really was, it was dangerous and poisonous to Miroku, who had captured a good amount of hit in the oblivion that seemed to control his life.

"Miroku!" Sango cried, rushing to help him. For only a few seconds her back was turned and the demon slayer lost concentration, but that was all the time Gaara needed. Soon she too was injured on the ground, the sand having broken her throwing arm to prevent her from being a pest any longer. Her injury wasn't as severe as Kagome's but it still put her out of the fight nonetheless.

::end of Chapter 6::

Ehg...haven't been writing as much of this lately as I'd have wanted...stupid family troubles...I won't bother to go into that, though. It'd probably just bore you all to death. So, on to more interresting things!

I think I'm finally finding a bit of a balance between all that I'm working on. Which is good, because I have a lot on my plate: work, cadets, writing, school, and time for myself occasionally too. So...yeah. Hope to have the next chapter done soon, but I'm kind of focusing on the original story that's being published. Hopefully, if all goes well, it should be done in a few months.

I've also been working on another big project, and even though I've got a bit done on it, I won't be posting it yet. It's kind of...an unofficial sequel of sorts. So, to make it less confusing for all of you, I'm going to wait until the other person's story is posted. I'm pretty much the only one who knows what goes on in it, since the two of us share our stories before we make them, so I think doing otherwise would just be a hassle...

Also have a few short ones coming up, mostly one-shots and things with only a few chapters.

Yeah...Cadets is cool, and I think I'm liking it. Standing so stiff is kind of uncomfortable, but I'll get used to it. I can tell it's going to help a lot; I really need leadership skills, and this is a place where you're kind of forced to learn it. Which is good, because I can learn, but I don't put it into effect unless I'm forced to do so.

I forgot to wish you all a happy Halloween last time I updated...sorry about that! So, that being said, happy belated Halloween!

Stay tuned for chapter 7, due out in about 2 weeks!


	7. When All is Lost

Chapter 7

"I...have to kill…" Gaara muttered, clutching his head. It was as if he was fighting two battles at once, though one of them couldn't be seen.

Inuyasha was now on his own, against an opponent he knew was too powerful for him to beat. His friends were down for the count, some quite possibly on the verge of death.

Despite the horrible odds, though, he refused to give up. He was fighting for his friends and the one he loved, and would never give up as long as they were in danger.

He tightened his grip on Tetsusiaga and charged for Gaara, making one last ditch effort to defeat him. He didn't care if it was futile at the moment; his friends' lives depended on him, and he intended to give it his all no matter what the consequences were.

As expected it didn't do much, and Gaara easily overtook him. This time, though, the red-haired boy was going in for the kill. He put much of his power into a counterattack, one which was just too powerful for Inuyasha to handle; he intended to end this.

Through dozens of shards of Tetsusiaga the sand burst, powering on toward the half-demon. The mass of sand finally hit its target, and soon Inuyasha was tightly wrapped in a trap made entirely of sand. Escape was impossible.

He looked up at his opponent, a mix of desperation and rage twinkling in his amber eyes. He knew this was the end, and he hated himself for not being able to do more. This feeling of intense anger nearly burned a hole in the one who had done this to him, he wanted more than anything right then to break free and rip out his throat.

Gaara looked at his prey. He had finally captured the half-demon and was in the perfect position to fulfill Naraku's last request. But for some reason, he found himself hesitating, suddenly having second thoughts.

He was about to put into effect the appropriate hand signs and utter the words that would end Inuyasha's life when an intense pain filled his head. It was a pain that was all too familiar to him, one that he wished he would never feel.

He dropped what he was doing and clutched his head again, trying to make the pain go away. He knew exactly what it was that was making him feel such agony; Shukaku was acting up again in all the excitement, and was trying to take over again. Or rather, it was already in control.

It was then that he realized what he was doing. It gave him mixed emotions and ultimately triggered an important memory, one that would definitely turn the tables in his battle against his inner demon.

Naruto's voice rang through his head, repeating the advice he'd spoken of after the two of them had fought. Those words brought back Gaara's real self and gave him the strength to force the demon back into submission.

After a few moments of him groaning and moaning in pain he looked up. He'd fought hard to bring himself back, and he was now in control. He never wanted anything like what had happened with Naruto to happen again, no matter what. He looked at the scene and immediately regretted what he'd been doing.

Inuyasha was completely defenseless, yet Gaara was still punishing him. He decided to let him go, and try to explain; after all, if Naruto had understood, maybe this guy would too. Now that Shukaku had been subdued, he could act civilized again.

"I…" Gaara said as the sand fell away harmlessly from Inuyasha, "I didn't know what I was doing. I was…taken over by…something horrible."

He didn't want to reveal the truth about himself and what was inside him just yet, that kind of information usually scared away anyone he talked to.

Inuyasha stayed put and didn't answer. A creepy vibe was emanating from him, one that everyone seemed to recognize. Gaara especially; though it was slightly different from when his demon took over, he knew that aura a mile away.

Since Tetsusiaga had been destroyed and he still thought he was in danger, his full demon form had emerged. He'd lost all control and could go completely crazy at any moment without warning.

And this time, thanks to the ever-destructive Naraku, Kagome wasn't around to help bring him back safely. Nobody knew how to do that but her.

Gaara stepped forward to try to talk to Inuyasha and see if he could respond. He thought that if he wasn't too far gone, he could attempt to bring him back, having gone through that many times himself. It didn't work in the least and only caused him to come alive and lash out.

As Gaara continued to advance Inuyasha lifted his head. To him all he saw with those blood red eyes was a threat, a threat that had to be eliminated.

Soon Gaara was very close to the berserk half-demon, who lashed out violently. With a massive force he clawed at Gaara. That single blow was so powerful it knocked Gaara back, his sand armor crumbling slightly. It was then that he knew that it wasn't a good situation.

"GRAAH!" he roared, as he slashed at Gaara once more. It was the last think he did before a miniscule part of his human side reemerged for the shortest period of time. He ran from the scene, hoping to find someone to help him, and not wanting to hurt any innocent people, especially his friends.

Gaara stared at where Inuyasha had been only moments ago, slightly shocked. Nothing like that had ever happened to him, not since his bout with Naruto had he observed such raw power. After recovering he looked over at the ones he'd wounded.

They looked pretty bad, and he felt that he somehow had to make it up to them. He didn't quite know how to make up for his mistake, though, so for the time being all he could do was make them comfy and let them rest, hoping that they'd be alright.

::change in focus::

"Lady Kaede! Lady Kaede!" a frantic villager cried in desperation, bursting into the old priestess' home. His face was filled with fear and worry and his face was as pale as a ghost, as if he'd just witnessed something terrible.

"Yes, what is it?" Kaede asked soothingly. By the look on his face it was very important, but at the same time she had to calm him down. If he stayed like this there was a good chance something would be lost in translation.

He managed to calm down after taking deep breaths for a few minutes and when he did he said with the fear still in his voice, "It's Inuyasha…he's back, but…"

"But what? Ye must tell or I cannot help," she said. His nervousness seemed to be rubbing off on her slightly, though she didn't really show it. She didn't want her feelings to provoke his, for that would only lead to disaster.

"It's not the same as before, he's not himself this time!" he cried, completely losing it. He couldn't keep his fear in check any longer and he ran outside to find shelter in case he came their way.

Kaede immediately knew what he meant. Inuyasha had come back, but as something possibly more dangerous than Gaara. This time she'd be ready, though, and already had a plan. She'd made one long ago, just in case of a situation like this.

She too went outside to find that all was calm. But she knew that with Inuyasha the way he was, that wouldn't last for long. Inuyasha was still on the outskirts of the village, and she could pinpoint his exact location by his massive dark aura.

She calmly hobbled over to where he was, and as he came into sight her suspicions were confirmed. There he was out in the open, blood staining his hands. It was human blood, for he was feasting on the guts of two ordinary farmers.

"Inuyasha…" she said, shaking her head. She hated to see him in such a state as this, and wasn't even sure if she'd be able to protect the village she held so dear. She had to try, though, and would give it her all even if it meant sacrificing her life to save the people who inhabited it.

She'd come prepared to risk it all, and with that in mind she sat down. Inuyasha still hadn't noticed her, and she had to act fast. She may not have much time.

A purplish dome soon surrounded Inuyasha, a powerful barrier that would keep him contained. She put every ounce of her power and will into that barrier in hopes that it would work until help came.

::change in focus::

Gaara sat on the ground beside the three creatures he'd injured. He really didn't know what to do, and was starting to get worried; they'd been unconscious for quite a while.

He was about to reluctantly give up on them to focus on what he was to do when he saw one of them move slightly. With a jump he scampered to her, a ray of hope returning to him.

She slowly sat up and groaned in pain. Her arm, obviously, was still broken. When she saw Gaara leaning over her she let out a scream, for she hadn't been awake to observe the turn of events and didn't know that he was normal again.

He backed away slightly, knowing that reasoning with her would be difficult; he'd nearly killed all her comrades, after all. He had to try, though, if any of them wanted to live.

"Look, I'm sorry," he said sincerely, and the look in his eyes proved that. Sango wasn't quite convinced, though, she needed more reason to trust him.

"What did you do with Inuyasha?" she asked nervously, when she saw that he was nowhere in sight. She automatically feared the worst.

He told the truth, knowing he had to win her trust and not sure of what had happened since he ran off, "He started to act odd like he was a whole different person, and then he ran away randomly."

She took that to mean he'd turned full demon. And since the red-haired boy now seemed to be trying to apologize for what he'd done and they had nobody but him to depend on for help, she decided to trust him. Things couldn't possibly get any worse.

When Gaara saw that she'd calmed down a bit he told her some very important information, "We have to get you all medical help fast. Your two friends don't look like they have much time left."

She looked at Miroku and Shippo, who both looked like death was advancing on them. They looked deathly ill, and from that alone she knew that he was right.

"But how? There's no way anyone here can help them, and to get help from the village could take a long while," she said sadly, starting to lose hope. If they died, she and Kirara would be all alone, with no hope of rescuing her brother.

"If I can get back to where I'm from, I think we'll be able to save them. There're some very talented people there," he said hopefully. He knew that people hadn't yet fully accepted him, but more were starting to realize that he wasn't all that bad.

Knowing that it was the only way they might have a chance at this, she accepted his offer. She didn't care if he'd done this to them; she just wanted to save her friends. And not wanting to lose track of Inuyasha, she got Kirara to search him out.

Gaara didn't quite know how the demon in him had gotten him there in the first place, so he just trusted his instinct. With Sango holding both Shippo and him, and Miroku draped over his shoulder, he tried the only thing he could think of.

He concentrated on his home as hard as he could, and miraculously felt the sand engulf the small group of misfits. It was then that he knew it was working; they were all on their way to the Sand Village.

::end of chapter 7::

Wow, I'm so sorry for not updating for so long! I've been meanign to but thought I'd finish some other stuff first, mostly the thing that's getting published. Oh man...faints...I've been typing so much in these past two weeks. Gone from having to type over 70 or 80, to having to type only about 20. I'm so braindead right now...

Anyway, on to info of this story. Might have been a little OOC in this chapter, but I really wasn't sure. So I went with it. I was thinking of ending it here, but decided that that would just be confusing. So I'm not making the next part into a sequel, it will be in this. I like the twist that happens in the next chapter...I think you all might like it too.

Next chapter might not be out until after the holidays, I'll be busy with a lot of stuff durring that time. Probably won't be writing at all...but it's all good. Once the new year comes around, I'll start to work on this nearly all the time, since the one that's getting published is now completely finished and the other fanfiction I'm working on can't be finished at the moment.

So...that being said...chapter 8 coming at some point to a fanfiction near you!


	8. An Unexpected Turn

Chapter 8

The ride to Gaara's world was unlike anything they'd ever experienced, and the two who were conscious felt a rush of adrenaline rush through their veins. Sango now knew what Kagome went through every time she traveled between her time and that of hers through the well.

Soon they were standing in the clearing Gaara had started out in, and the odd tingling sensation left their bodies. The others didn't know any better, having never been to this world, but Gaara immediately knew something was wrong.

The trees, which had been young and healthy when he'd left, were now old and unhealthy. It almost looked like a fire had been through there, though nothing like that had happened.

By the looks of the place, a great battle or two had taken place recently. Dusty shuriken stuck out from the trunks of trees all around, the ground was dug up, and it was just generally a disaster.

He was speechless, not knowing what to think. This confused him to no end; he couldn't have been away for that long, yet the place had changed completely. His trance-like state of confusion was soon broken by Sango's voice, pelting questions at him.

"Gaara? That…that is your name, correct?" she asked, looking nervously around. It wasn't that this place gave her the creeps, but her friends seemed to be getting worse by the minute, and she was worried they wouldn't make it.

"Y-yes…" he replied, peeling his eyes off the mass of destruction to look at her.

"OK, now on to my next questions. Where are we? Why are we just standing here doing nothing? And who is this person who can heal my friends?" she asked franticly, her voice full of worry.

"Oh yeah…" Gaara muttered. He'd gotten caught up in his thought, "We have to get back to the Sand Village. There'll be someone there who can help us."

She nodded, shifting Shippo's weight in her arms so he'd be a bit more comfortable, "OK, I'll follow you. Let's get going before it's too late and they really do die."

He too shifted Miroku's weight on his shoulder, and began to walk the path he knew so well. Despite the entire area being destroyed, the windy dirt path hadn't changed much at all.

They soon emerged from the small forest to find themselves perched on cliff overlooking the dessert. Far in the distance they could see a fortress type structure, and Gaara recognized it to be his home.

"The Sand Village. It's about a half day's walk from here, if we take my route," he pointed out so Sango would at least know something of their activities.

"A…a half day's walk? Isn't it possible to get there faster? My friends…" she complained, though the look on Gaara's face told her it wouldn't be possible.

I don't know any of that high-level space/time transportation jutsu. Walking is the only way I can think of, and with my skill level it would be the most proficient," he explained, "And if you want to save your friends, you'll want to get gong. The longer you stay here, the less likely they are to live."

She silently nodded in agreement, ready to get going. She agreed completely with that, and accepted the fact that they had to start walking ASAP if she wanted her friends to stay with her. But she soon realized that they had another dilemma. "How do we get down from here?" she asked, looking over the edge of the cliff.

"Ah, that I can help with," he said confidently, "Wrap your arms around my waist and hold tight. Whatever you do, don't let go of me or that little friend of yours."

She did as she was instructed, making sure that Shippo was secure and she was holding tight. She didn't know what he was planning, but she had a feeling it would make their journey a lot easier.

A moment of tense silence passed, and then Gaara did something unthinkable. It was the route he always took and it was faster than any other, one that only he could take. But Sango wasn't expecting it in the least, and was in for a big surprise.

With a bit of a lurch they fell forward into the open air. Gaara had purposely flung himself, with them holding to him tight, off the cliff, and as they fell they gained speed bit by bit.

Sango screamed as loud as she possibly could, struggling to keep hold of both Gaara and Shippo. It was harder than one would think, when falling at high speeds toward a merciless ground, a fall which could very certainly kill them. But she did it nonetheless, if only for the adrenaline that had reentered her body.

Not wanting to see the impact Sango closed her eyes. She could still feel the wind whipping past her; it felt like a thousand pins were piercing her skin as she fell. She didn't know how Gaara could stand it. With intense fear she nervously waited for the collision she knew was coming.

But it never did. She never felt that intense pain, she never heard her own bones shatter, she never say that tell-tale bright light that led to the afterlife, the impact never came to be. Instead she felt a firm but gentle something bind her to Gaara.

The sand, as Gaara had known it would, had made sure he didn't get injured from the fall; Shukaku didn't want him to die for if he did, the demon would die along with him. Sango nervously opened her eyes to find them being lowered gently to the ground, the sand anchored at the top of the cliff.

"But…no…splat…" she managed to gape between big breaths, still in shock about not being dead. She'd really thought that he had intended to kill them.

Gaara laughed softly, "Yeah, that's the reaction I had the first time I did it too, and all my friends as well. The shock will wear off momentarily.

Soon they were standing on solid ground, something that Sango didn't want to change any time soon. Just as he said she was very soon back in her right mind, and they were ready to hit the road again.

"Please, let's get going. I don't think we have too much time left," Sango urged a few minutes later once she was ready. She desperately wanted to save her friends.

"Yes, we'll do that. Follow me," Gaara hissed, though not in his usual way. This girl was starting to get on his nerves with all her 'friends' talk, but he just tried to ignore her.

With that they set off for the fortress in the distance, their footprints leaving a trail behind them. They didn't bother to cover their tracks; they had to hurry and it would only slow them down, and it didn't seem like anyone was following them.

::change in time::

The giant wall that surrounded the Village Hidden in the Sand ominously loomed up ahead of them. As they'd traveled it had seemed to grow in size and now that they were standing at its base, it nearly seemed larger than life.

As with the forest something seemed odd about the place, though Gaara couldn't quite place his finger on it. The atmosphere was just…different.

"It's just so huge…how could regular people erect such a thing?" Sango gaped, staring up to see where it ended.

"Yes…" Gaara said, taking no notice of her question and thinking of what could possibly be out of place, "The help should be inside, let's go."

He had an uneasy feeling about this. He knew something was terribly wrong, but he just couldn't figure out what it was. He only figured it out as they entered the massive gate into the village.

His mouth fell when he set eyes upon the Village, he couldn't believe his eyes. He'd known something had been wrong, but he hadn't imagined that it would end up to be this drastic. Sango soon came to a halt beside him, a confused look plastered on her face.

"Gaara, what is this? How are we supposed to…did you lie about the whole healer thing?" she asked franticly, not knowing what to think. It really did look like the entire thing was a sham.

"I-I don't know what happened here. When I left and came to your world it wasn't like this at all, it was completely normal," he said slowly, looking around.

The city was in ruins, completely destroyed beyond any repair. Though the wall that surrounded the place was in relatively good condition and didn't reveal anything abnormal, the city inside was nearly unrecognizable.

Not a building was left standing, all lay in worthless shambles. Not a soul was to be seen besides the ones who had just entered the village; it was like a creepy ghost town. Even the Kazecage's building, one of the most secure structures in the entire Village of the Sand, had fallen. It was just generally a disaster.

"No…they have to be here somewhere," Gaara said to himself, as he wandered farther into the village. He couldn't believe it, he wouldn't; his brother and sister couldn't possibly be gone.

As he searched through the rubble he grew more and more frantic. He genuinely was worried about them, something that he didn't know could happen, but despite not knowing that he could feel such things he refused to accept the fact they could be dead.

He didn't give up, and Sango followed him. She was starting to get annoyed; her friends' lives hung in the balance, yet here Gaara was carefully sifting through dirt looking for something.

She was about to tell him to hurry when she saw out of the corner of her eye. "Umm…G-Gaara? There's someone here…" she said nervously, tapping him on his shoulder.

He ignored her, completely absorbed in the task he was trying to carry out. The only time he noticed was when this new person was looming over him, blocking out the sun and dowsing him in shadow.

"Hey, you. What're you–" the newcomer started, though stopped when she saw the boy's face. With disbelieving eyes she stared at him, "Gaara? Is…is that really you?"

In her voice was a mix of surprise and confusion. She had no idea what was going on now either, and everyone was in the situation. She couldn't take her eyes off of him.

"Temari, you're not dead!" Gaara exclaimed in a relieved way, though it was painfully obvious that something was still out of place.

She looked different from when he'd last saw her, like she'd suddenly grown older. In fact, that was exactly what had happened, just in a not-so-sudden way.

"Gaara, is this for real? Is that really you standing there?" Temari asked again.

He looked around, not believing his eyes either. As he moved Miroku's body swayed on his shoulder. After a moment he turned back to his sister.

"Yeah, but…what happened here? And why do you look so different all of a sudden?" he asked meekly, not quite sure of how to word it.

"Sudden? Are you kidding? It's been four years since Shukaku randomly acted up like that and you disappeared. I never say you again, thought you'd be gone forever…until now, that is," she explained, a mix of somberness and excitement in her voice.

A moment of silence passed in which Gaara let it sink in a bit. It made sense, everything looking so different and confusing. But still he found it hard to accept that fact, for it seemed a little out of this world.

He was about to ask Temari something when she randomly grabbed hold of the arm that wasn't supporting the monk.

"Listen, Gaara. It's not safe to be out here like this. I don't know about your friends, but we have to get out of here. We'll talk when we're safe," she said hurriedly, tugging on his arm.

Sango followed Gaara, who was being dragged away. She was determined to save Miroku and Shippo, and wouldn't leave him alone until that happened.

::end of chapter 8::

I'll bet you weren't expecting that now, were you?!? Yeah, I didn't think so. But it happened anyway, and now a whole new part of the fanfiction is underway!

They are now officially in the world of Shippuden, though it's one that nobody predicted. You'll find out more about that in coming chapters. Lots will be explained, you'll see. And I'm going to try to reintroduce as many characters as I can. I'm really starting to have fun with this fanfiction.

So...I might have to write even less of this. That story that was going to get published...to much was wrong with it, and they couldn't edit it. You'd think that would give me more time to write fanfictions, but nope. They said that if I wanted to I could expand it and make it loads better, and they'd still want to publish it. So I'm doing that; I have to go from about 10000 words to about 40000 or 50000 words, so that might take up a bit of my time. But I'll write this too, so don't worry. Just thought I'd tell y'all.

Anyway, as the suspense thickens...I have to bid you all goodbye for now. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a spectacular New Years! I was sick for most of the holiday, so that kind of sucks, but...it's all good. I had some time to write and such. Luckily I got my voice back in time for school, but since it's been gone for two weeks now...I'm just itching to talk!

Until next time...

Chapter 9 coming soon to a fanfic near you, probably in two weeks (I think I'll stay with that deadline thingie, it's a lot less stressful that the every week thing).


	9. Old Friends, New Time

Chapter 9

The group of five quickly ducked away, sneakily slinking to the other end of the destroyed village. Sango wondered what on earth was going on, but followed nonetheless.

"Hey, what's going on? Where are we going?" she asked, growing nervous. Time was running out; Shippo's breathing had become shallow, barely there. His demonic healing ability was working hard, but it just wasn't doing enough.

Temari turned around and said harshly, "SHHH! We have to get out of here undetected, so be quiet."

Sango quieted down, though that didn't stop her from thinking the worst and hoping with all her heart that they'd make it in time to save her friends. She could only imagine how Miroku was doing.

Soon they came upon a pile of rubble, a pretty average-looking one at that. But it soon became apparent that it wasn't ordinary at all; on the contrary, it was quite the opposite.

Once everyone was gathered around the rubble Temari released the genjutsu seal on it, thus revealing a secret entrance. She pushed everyone in, and quickly followed after them.

The rays of sunshine from outside disappeared, the seal now back in effect. They found themselves in a narrow tunnel, one that led to a secret room underground.

"Gaara, once we get there I'll explain some stuff to you," Temari whispered, urging them forward, "We should get there soon, it's not a very long walk. Once I'm sure we're safe we can do everything."

Sango grunted, but still continued on. If it meant a higher possibility of saving her friends, she'd do everything possible.

They continued on through the underground walkway, and the space between the walls gradually got bigger. Soon they were standing at the entrance of a massive underground room, big enough to fit an entire community with ease.

Makeshift beds covered one end of the room, more than Gaara or Sango could possibly count. Many other things needed for living proficiently were present there as well; it was obvious that this was a refugee camp of sorts.

Temari was about to speak but didn't quite get to. Gaara said before she could utter even a word, "Temari, is there a medical ninja here, by any chance? These two seriously need some help, or they may not make it."

She glanced at Shippo and Miroku and nodded, "Just a moment, I'll take you over to the clinic."

They walked to their right and came upon a wooden booth. Inside was another person, the one who regulated the admissions and discharges from the mediocre hospital.

"How many and from what village?" the man asked gruffly, taking no notice of Gaara. He was too absorbed in his work to notice much of anything.

"Two from the…umm…" she started, and then turned to her brother, "Where are they from, anyway? I don't see their headbands anywhere."

"You have to trust me on this," he whispered to Temari, "I met them when I disappeared, and…I hurt them. I want to help them to make up for it. Lie, if you have to, but we have to get them in there."

A slightly confused look crossed her face, but she agreed nonetheless. This seemed important to him, and after not seeing him for years, she wanted to do at least something meaningful for him.

"They're from the Waterfall Village. They heard that their village would be attacked next, and fled," she lied, and luckily the guy in the booth bought it. They were admitted, and soon Miroku and Shippo were each lying on their own beds.

They all stood there for a moment, surveying the grim scene. Dozens of wounded men and women filled the room, some with minor cuts and some with life threatening wounds. And not all of them were adults; many of them were defenseless children.

Seeing that none of the medics were around at the moment to tend to the new patients Temari called out, "Ino, Sakura, you have some new people to treat."

The two of them poked their heads out from the back room, and rushed to Miroku and Shippo. After a few moments of careful observation they stood to face the others and spoke their results.

"The man appears to be poisoned, though oddly only in his right hand. It might be difficult to extract it so he can heal, but I think I can pull this off," Sakura said confidently, smiling fiercely.

"But…but please don't remove the cloth on his hand," Sango cautioned. With him unconscious, there was no telling what calamity could result if the wind tunnel was released.

Though Sakura didn't get why she would request such a thing she respected the girl's wishes and nodded. She'd try to not remove the cloth.

"And the little one…" Ino said slowly, "His injuries are quite extensive, but I may be able to help him. It might take a bit more time than usual, though. Luckily nothing major was ruptured, so he should make it."

Immediately after that they began the treatments. They went on with their lives as if Gaara wasn't even there. A slightly disappointed look crossed his face; for once he was actually happy to see them, yet they acted like he wasn't even in the same room as them.

"Gaara…to tell you the truth, people have convinced themselves that you're never coming back. It was a way to ease their pain, and now that you're here they probably only think you're an illusion because you look exactly the same as when they last saw you," Temari explained sadly.

Gaara muttered, not knowing what else to say, "Oh…"

"But…" his sister started, "There may be at least one person who will believe that you're really you. Though I have to warn you, he's…not in the best condition right now."

He somehow knew the exact person she was talking about, the boy with the most spirit. He requested, "Please, take me to see him. After all, he's the one who saved me on more than one occasion."

"Fine, but I don't think you'll particularly like what you see," Temari agreed, and gestured for them to follow.

The three of them walked across the main part of the underground cavern until they reached the very end of the place. Located there was a plain old door, though it did have a shiny plaque on it.

The plaque read 'Naruto' and when he saw that Gaara's eyes lit up with excitement. He was finally going to see the one who'd saved him more than once, and by doing so saved the lives of many others.

"OK, well here you go. Naruto's room," Temari told him, "Like I said before, you probably won't like it. And after you're done in there I can tell you what's happened since you disappeared."

He nodded and opened the door, and inside saw a fairly large bed to one side of the room. It was apparent that this one room was comfier that the rest of the place, and fancier too. It looked almost as if it belonged to some sort of hero.

On the bed her saw a head sticking out of a mass of sheets. He couldn't see much of the boy but from what he could see, he looked like he'd been beaten pretty badly. Like Temari had said, he truly looked like he'd been in better shape.

He walked up to the bed and looked closely at Naruto. He seemed to be in a coma-like state. Leaning in a bit closer to see if he was responsive Gaara whispered, "N-Naruto…?"

His eyes slowly opened, a slightly clouded look present in them. He really seemed to be out of it, and Temari had been completely right; he really hated to see his friend in such a state as this.

Though he was more or less unresponsive right then, however, as soon as he set eyes on Gaara he seemed to come alive. He shakily sat up and stared oddly at the red-haired boy.

"Gaara!" he cried excitedly, "Gaara, you're back! I can't believe you're really back!"

He winced in pain, lying back down momentarily. Soon he was sitting up again, though, after forcing himself to endure the pain he was in. Now that he'd seen Gaara after all those years his spirit had returned to him and he was suddenly filled with a new form of determination.

"Naruto…I don't know what happened. Temari found me in the Sand Village…she brought me down here and I had to make sure you were OK. And to thank you," Gaara said nervously.

Although he didn't love Naruto, his confused way of thinking and state of mind was making it sound like he did like the boy as more than just a friend.

"What happened, eh? Well when you find out I'm going to be there!" he said loudly, lurching out of his bed and onto his feet. He nearly fell over again, which caught the attention of his personal medic.

She ran in and quickly helped him up, positioning him back on the bed. She was in a bit of a state of shock; she hadn't seen Naruto this active for at least a year. Wanting to see if everything was all right and he was really acting like this of his own free will, she began to conduct a series of tests on him.

A little more forceful than necessary, Naruto pushed her out of the way and said, "Hinata, please not now! I'm fine! Can't you see that Gaara has finally come back?"

"Y-yes, Naruto," Hinata said in that shy way of hers, blushing madly. Only now that Naruto said so, she really noticed Gaara's presence for the first time. She'd programmed her mind to ignore the illusion of Gaara that she and everyone else saw nearly ever day, and had thought that the real thing was just one of those illusions.

She bowed to him and was about to say hello when Naruto became active again, cutting off her chance to say much of anything.

"OK, Gaara! Let's get you caught up!" he said overenthusiastically, again stumbling over and falling on his face. He groaned slightly but slowly got up. He'd have to regain the control of his legs after them being unused for so long.

As she shyly touched the tips of her index fingers together Hinata cautioned, "Naruto, you really can't push yourself so much like that. You've been laying there for at least a year, you body still has to get used to the feeling and pressure of standing."

"Heh…you mean these little scratches? There's no way they'll hurt me now," he smiled with a laugh, "Seriously, when has something like this ever stopped me? Now, Gaara, let's get going. It's time to tell you what's gone on since you skipped out on us."

Hinata let him go, knowing that now that he was this determined there would be no stopping him. She did follow close behind him, though; he was still wobbly on his feet, and she had a feeling that at some point in the near future he'd be needing her help again.

They exited the bland room, Naruto emerging from it for the first time in nearly longer than he could remember. Waiting patiently outside were the others, chatting about random things. When they heard Gaara approaching they turned around to greet him.

Upon seeing more than one person in his group a shocked expression swept across Temari's face just as one did with Hinata, she wasn't expecting Naruto to be up and about.

Gaara ignored her surprise, knowing that he and Naruto would get that expression quite often from now on, and asked curiously in a slightly forceful manner, "OK, so what exactly is going on here?"

::end of chapter 9::

Sweetness, so here's chapter nine of Ninja in a Demon's World! Really kind of starting in on the whole Shippuden thing here, which is actually really fun.

I've been really busy lately. I've been working on a fanfiction of Invader Zim, getting to a certain point. Once I get to that point I won't be able to continue any farther for the time being, and I'm almost at that point, so I'm going to be finishing that up pretty quick. Other than that I'm working on this occationally, which is ok; I have a slight back-up of chapters, so I can afford to work on other things at the same time, get a little variety.

Other than all that I've been working on an original novel that's going to be getting published. I need aproximately 20 more chapters which will probably take me a good half year, so I really need to keep on that. If I really get into writing it and come up with some good ideas, though, it could be finished sooner than that, which is what I'm hoping for. It's just right now...I'm too caught up in my fanficitons it seems.

Yeah...quit Cadets because it was so disorganized and stuff, and I wrote a letter to the head peoples down there listing everything that I saw was wrong. I didn't think they'd do anything about it, but I have a friend in there who's a flight sergent, and apparently he was talking to them about some parts of it, trying to improve things. That makes me really happy, that I could bring at least a bit of order to an organizations such as Air Cadets.

So that means I should hopefully have more time to work on my fanfictions. Hopefully.

Anyway...that's about all, I'd say. Chapter 10 should be out in a couple of weeks, in two monday's time.


	10. Change

Chapter 10

Temari sat down on a nearby bed, thinking of how to explain all that had happened in the four years he'd been away. After a moment she said, "Gaara…you know how I told you that four years have passed since you disappeared?"

"Yeah, but I was really only gone for a day or two…at most, a week. I was in her world and used Shukaku to get back," he said, the concept confusing him.

"Then you must have accidentally come to this period of time, if you were trying to get back to your time," Naruto suggested. It made sense; he'd focused only on the place and not the time, and this particular ability of Shukaku's was one he hadn't yet gotten to control completely.

"Fine, but still…what's happened here. I've been gone, but what does that have to do with anything?" Gaara asked coldly. He really didn't get it, because everyone thought of him as a very disposable being.

A minute of tense silence passed between the group before Naruto said softly, "Everything. Without you here everything changed. And I hate to say it, but it changed for the worse…"

Gaara laughed sadly, "Yeah, right. I'm just a monster, a weapon created by my father to ensure the Sand Village's success. Nobody cares about me, nobody needs me, and nobody wants me."

"Gaara, that's not–" Temari started, though she was interrupted before she could finish.

"The Sand Village needs you, you brother and sister needed you, _I_ need you, Gaara. You may not think so, but it's true," Naruto told him fiercely clenching his fists so hard the force of his nails digging into his skin caused a trickle of blood.

Gaara gazed at the golden-haired boy, a look of surprise on his face. He hadn't realized that Naruto felt so strongly about this. Back when the two of them had battled the boy had thought like this, but he hadn't thought those feelings would carry on for so long. He tried to think of something to say but nothing came to mind.

"He's right, Gaara. You have no idea how much your disappearance effected everyone. To say the least…your disappearance caused a great deal of devastation," Temari continued.

"But…all I ever did was kill, all I ever thought about was who to kill next," Gaara said slowly, "How could anyone care about a cold hearted killer like me?"

"God, you're so slow!" growled Naruto, "That wasn't you, it was what Shukaku moulded you to be. You just hadn't learned to control it yet."

Sango, though she didn't quite know the details of the discussion, got the basics of it. Hoping she could contribute to this and help him understand, she spoke up to have her say.

"Gaara. I may not know exactly what this place is like or the people in it, but I do know a lot about what they're telling you about," she said.

Everyone turned to look at her; in the midst of their heated discussion they'd forgotten that she was there. Before any of them could say anything in objection she continued, determined to get Gaara to see everyone's simple reason.

She explained to him, "You know that guy you were fighting back where I come from? He sounds a lot like you. He too has a demon side that's connected to his very being, it's in his blood. He doesn't know whether he wants to be a human or a demon."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Temari replied snootily, though she didn't exactly mean to.

"Hey, I'm getting there," Sango replied defensively, "We, my friends and I, really do need him. The world as we know it needs him, because without him we have no chance of defeating Naraku. Even though he has such a horrible force inside him, if he were to disappear…all hell would break loose and society would collapse."

Temari laughed, "Not bad. Actually, that's a pretty simple way of describing what happened here."

Gaara stayed silent, letting his brain process this new information. Slowly he was starting to accept the fact that people really did need him, but it was still such a new concept to him. After a moment or two Naruto spoke again.

"So then, Gaara, now that we all get that we desperately needed you, are you ready to know what happened while you were off on your little adventure?" he asked with a smile and a wink. He sure seemed to have cheered up fast.

"Yeah, I think so," he said confidently, waiting for someone to start. He was eager to see what his sister had been up to, but also dreaded what he'd unknowingly put everyone through.

Before anyone could start this talk of a lifetime Sango told them, "Well, I'm going to get out of your hair now. I should probably stick by my friends' sides for support." What they'd be talking about wouldn't concern her, and she wanted to make sure Shippo and Miroku were being tended to.

They all nodded and waved her goodbye. As she walked away Temari called out to her, "Whatever you do, don't go up to the surface, and if you really have to make sure you have an experienced ninja with you. It's just too dangerous out there."

Once they were alone the discussion began.

"Well, when we saw you go down into the ground, we had no idea what was going on," Temari started, thinking it would be better to start from the very beginning, "We immediately ran for help, we were so confused. Unfortunately, nobody at the time believed us that this had really happened."

A sad look crossed her face, remembering that day in perfect detail. Though she'd tried so hard to erase that memory from her mind to lessen the pain of losing her brother, she never had been able to.

"We got an urgent message down in the Leaf Village, sent by Temari and Kankuro. Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi, and I were sent out to help, I made sure of it. No way was I going to give up on you so easily," Naruto continued, half smiling.

Temari continued from there, "The six of us seared for days, trying desperately to find you. But obviously we didn't find anything. Though we hated to do it, we had to give up the search after a while. None of us reported our lack of findings to our superiors."

"Well why did you do that? If you'd told someone, it could have turned out so much different. Who knows what could have happened if other people had known…" Gaara pondered out loud.

"That only would have created chaos," Temari denied, "People, no matter who they or what's inside of them…when they randomly disappear without a trace it isn't really something that others feel good about."

"Good point," muttered Gaara. That scenario had been one he hadn't even thought of, and he felt slightly embarrassed that it was so. He shut up then so that they could tell him the rest of what had happened.

"Anyway, having the only one who really knew what I was going through and how I really felt seemed to…" Naruto started, thinking carefully of which words to use, "I went through I type of deep depression for a while, would be the simplest way to put it."

"Other than that, though, everything was relatively good for a year or two. Over time, however, things slowly started to fall apart. Nobody realized it, but we really did need you," Temari told him.

Another moment of silence passed, and Gaara could nearly feel the tension in the room grow and the mood turn sour. He got the sense that everything the two had told him up until now was child's play, and very quickly he was becoming nervous.

"Gaara…you probably never found out about this because you disappeared, but there's an evil organization out there. From the information we've gathered on them over the years, their main goal is to collect the tailed demons, what we have inside of us, to attain world domination," Naruto explained, remembering in vivid detail what Kakashi had told him.

World domination. It sounded so far fetched, but if Gaara added in the factor of the tailed beasts' enormous power, it suddenly seemed like that obscene goal could really be reached somehow.

"Well they, of course, wanted Shukaku. Two odd looking fellows from Akatsuki, the evil organization Naruto just mentioned, came to take you away so they could get your demon out of your body. We truthfully told them you weren't there, but they refused to believe us," Temari said, recalling what had happened after Naruto and the rest of them had gone home.

"What did they do? I mean, I really wasn't there and couldn't be abducted, so they had to just leave the village alone, right?" Gaara asked in a slightly confused way, not realizing he was being naive.

"Wrong," Temari sighed, "They destroyed the city looking for you, in the most horrible way ever. One of the guys had a very weird ability, mouths in his hands. He moulded clay and blew up the entire city beyond repair, as you saw on the way here."

"Oh…" Gaara muttered softly. He didn't know what to say.

"Kankuro and I, along with every other capable shinobi available, fought desperately to protect the village, but…the Kazekage that had taken over since Orochimaru's attack on the Leaf Village was taken out pretty quickly and from there…" she said softly, trailing off completely at the end.

Gaara looked around. Now that he thought of it, he hadn't seen his brother Kankuro around at all since he'd gotten there. Figuring he was just out looking for food or something he asked, "Where is Kankuro, anyway?"

Temari hung her head and told him solemnly, "Kankuro, he…he didn't make it. The man with the clay blew him up so we'd tell him where you were, even though we already told him we didn't know. He died for our village, and in vain no less."

"I…I'm sorry, I didn't know…" Gaara muttered softly, trying hard not to cry. It was a difficult task, but he somehow managed to keep his tears on the inside.

"Of course you didn't. You only just got here, after all," Temari laughed, wiping a tear from her cheek, "It's in the past, and although he died in vain, he died to keep us safe. He'll live on in our actions and hearts, and that's all that matters now."

"Yeah, don't worry about it, Gaara!" Naruto said brightly, in an attempt to cheer the red-haired boy up. It worked slightly, and soon they were able to continue.

"But then…Naruto, what happened to everyone else? And you look like you've seen better days, so what happened?" Gaara asked curiously. It had really been bothering him this whole time, and he desperately wanted to know.

Naruto started, "Well, the Akatsuki were really pissed about not being able to find you to capture Shukaku, and they just kind of went crazy. They needed to get every tailed demon for their plan to work, and your disappearing messed up everything for them."

Gaara understood perfectly; he was that one piece of the puzzle that could make or break that evil organization, and by the sounds of Naruto's voice he'd broken it. But at a very high cost.

"They came to the Leaf Village a few months after destroying the Sand, to come after me. I guess they figured they'd capture everyone else and then just wait for you to come back, which is why it's so dangerous out there. Unfortunately for me I was still in my little depression," he continued.

He took a deep breath, remembering in perfect detail the devastating trail of events that happened that day. He soon continued, ignoring the monstrous lump in his throat.

"So these two Akatsuki members, Itachi and Kisame, stormed into Kohona. The sight of Itachi reminded me of his brother Sasuke, who left sometime after you disappeared to join Orochimaru. The sight and memory worsened my stare of mind," he said sadly.

What he said next shocked Gaara to no end. He'd known that the boy was strong and he'd never thought that something like this would happen to him.

::end of chatper 10::

Yeah, so here's chapter 10 for you. We now kind of know what happened to Naruto, though it goes into a bit of greater detail in the next chapter. And then it's on to the journey! You'll never know what's in store for them, not until you read it (and I write it!).

So exams are finally over, thank god for that. I was too obsessed with Portal and the demo of DOOM 3 to do much studying, so I'm kind of fretting the delivery of my results...it's 20 percent of my grade right there, and I just hope I didn't fail epicly. But I'm really glad that part of the year is over, because now I get to be in film class, english, SS, and cooking! WOOOO!

But yeah, other than that everything's going smoothly over here. Have a few chapters of my novel done, my manga (after months of being on hold) is finally up and running again, thought up a few new ideas (one is a crossover with Portal...so obsessed), scrapped an idea or two that didn't work out, started a new project or two...yeah, I've been keeping busy. Which is a good thing!

And just so you know: The Orange Box is made of pure win. Just thought I'd announce that to the world.

That's all I have to tell you for now...so stay tuned for chapter 11, due out in a week or two (most likely two)!


	11. A World Not His Own

Chapter 11

"So they came after me, and what with me being all depressed, they easily overtook me. Sure, I fought them, but my heart just wasn't there…" Naruto said, smiling weakly.

Gaara sat there staring at Naruto, his mouth hanging open. He couldn't believe it; Naruto, the very person who had saved his life on multiple occasions and had such a powerful spirit, had been captured!

"Luckily the Leaf Village acted fast, though, or I really would have been a goner. Everyone came to safe me: the Pervy Sage, Kakashi, Tsunade, everyone. I guess they were fearful of what would happen if they got hold of Kuubi," he continued.

"But…how? Your determination and will would never allow something like that to happen. You can overcome anything…I've seen it. You even helped me, which I thought was impossible…" Gaara puzzled. He just couldn't make himself accept what he was being told.

"Gaara, you have to understand something," Temari said in an attempt to clarify the matter, "Determination means nothing when your spirit's been crushed. Without spirit, there is no will or determination."

He thought for a moment, and soon realized that it made perfect sense. When he finally got himself to accept this devastating news he gestured for Naruto to continue, wanting to hear the rest of the story.

"Well, when a tailed beast is extracted from its host, that person dies. The only reason I'm still here is because of everyone who came to protect me. The Akatsuki only got hold of about a third of the fox demon we all reckon, but…as you saw, the cost of doing so was high," he said.

He stopped there, seemingly unable to continue. Gaara could tell that he was trying not to cry in front of everybody; he truly felt bad about what had been done to save him, even if it was for the good of all the villages. Soon Temari took over for him to finish up the tale of what had happened in the red-haired boy's absence.

"The Leaf Village's hokage, Tsunade, died to save Naruto. Because of her and everyone else Naruto was saved, as you can probably see. Years passed after that, more and more of the world's countries feeling the Akatsuki's wrath, the refugees coming here. Naruto was in a coma-like state ever since, responding to nothing…he couldn't forgive himself for what he'd put everyone through. Or that is, until you came back," she concluded.

"I see…" Gaara muttered, "Naruto, I'm sorry. If it wasn't for me, this never would have happened to you."

He laughed, "Gaara, it's really not your fault. Shukaku acted up on its own, it was completely out of your control. And some things just can't be avoided."

Gaara thought for a moment. Even though he'd put everyone through such a horrible thing, they still didn't blame him. He didn't know what to think… he just had to make things better for everyone.

An idea was brewing in his head. He could see it working out, and was sure that it was one that would help this situation and many others as well.

"Guys… I think I might be able to fix all of this. I mean, everything. If I can do this right, everything will change and you all wouldn't have to have gone through so much. It won't be easy, but with some help I think I can make it work," he suggested, a determined smile forming on his face.

"Gaara, what are you thinking in that head of yours? That's impossible; what's done is done, and there's no way to change that," Temari muttered coldly, being the pessimist of the group for once. Though she was glad her brother was trying to help, she felt it couldn't be done.

"Well I would do it the same way I got here. Four years didn't pass for he while I was away, it was more like four weeks. I traveled forward in time, hence why I still look the same as back then, so I could probably go back in time as well," he explained, using what he'd learned to his advantage.

That right there made the others think. He was right; it was the only explanation for him looking exactly the same as before. Their spirits rose. They would do anything to fight what was happening to their homes.

If that meant going back in time to right the wrongs before they happened, so be it. They were determined and would do whatever it took.

They nodded and said together, "Well if it prevents all this from happening, let's do it. What's the plan, Gaara?"

He was about to tell the two what he was thinking, but he didn't quite get to it. Before he could he lost nearly all consciousness, for apparently no reason at all. Although they didn't know it, this was one of the few effects of the time traveling, but it was one that could be easily solved.

"He needs rest," Temari stated, "It looks like he hasn't slept for days. But remember: don't let him fall asleep completely. If that happens, this will all be for nothing."

"And there's no telling what kind of stress he put his body through with all this space and time travel stuff… you're right. We should let him stay like this for a while." Naruto said, crossing his arms.

With the thought of the consequences of time travel puzzling their minds they carried Gaara to the medical room of the underground lair so he could rest – or half-rest, so Shukaku couldn't emerge – in peace.

::Change in time::

His eyes opened slowly, and for a moment Gaara forgot where he was. Very soon he remembered, though, and was wide-awake.

Hastily he got up, yawning and stretching the remains of his semi-consciousness from his system. He had something very important to do; he hadn't yet spoke of his plan, and wanted to do so as soon as possible.

Making his way out of the medical room he noticed that there were many more people than before. It shocked him to be honest, the sheer difference in numbers. Among the injured he spotted the ones he'd helped, Sango standing by their sides looking over them.

Word had gotten out that Gaara was back and that he had a plan to make all of this right. Shinobi from every Akatsuki inhabited village had gathered there, thinking of Gaara as their savoir. Many had risked it all, and it was clear what sacrifices were being made.

But among the hundreds of ninja who praised him or smiled at him as he walked by, or who lay in critical state in the medical room, he saw no sign whatsoever of Temari or Naruto.

He wondered where they could be and decided to ask someone of their whereabouts. He decided to wait until he came across someone he knew, so it wouldn't be so awkward. That, as it turns out, happened faster than he'd thought it would.

Among the crowd he spotted one of the competitors from the Chuunin Exams, and a formidable one at that. It was one of the people he'd gone up against.

"Gaara!" Bushy Brows shouted, running forward. He was excited to see the red-haired boy; long since had he forgiven him for nearly killing him during their match, so he could focus on staying alive.

Gaara stood there, trying desperately to remember the boy's name. It soon came to him and he said as a greeting, "Rock Lee, I see you're safe. I'm… sorry about back then."

It was a slightly awkward few moments that passed after that, but neither really cared. Despite all that had happened in the past they were glad to see each other. After all, Gaara was supposed to save them all.

"I'd heard that you'd come back after all this time, everyone is saying it," Lee started, "But to be honest, I didn't believe it. I had to come and see for myself."

"Yeah, I'm back," Gaara confirmed, not knowing what to say, "Hey, do you know where Temari or Naruto are? I have something important to tell them, it's what you're all here for."

Lee thought for a moment before answering, "I think they went up to the top to check for survivors of a recent attack and see what the situation is. Now that Naruto's up and running, he wants to get completely involved. They should probably be back soon, a day or two at most. Until then…what d'you want to do?"

Immediately Gaara started to walk away, toward one of the many halls that led away from the immense room. He planned on going to the surface to find them, wanting desperately to fix what he'd caused.

Lee figured he'd act out like that, and refused to leave him alone for that reason. He knew that should Gaara go up there like this, the hopes of everyone would surely be crushed.

"Where's the way to Kohona? They might be there," Gaara asked, after noticing the black-haired boy walking briskly beside him. He was glad the boy was following him; though he was determined to find them, he had no idea of how to do so.

"Oh, you don't want to go up there. The Leaf Village is infested with Akatsuki. They've set up camp there, waiting for Naruto to come back so they can snatch him and finish what they started. They still want world domination," Lee continued, halting and holding his arm out to stop Gaara.

Gaara laughed, "So? I have to tell them this so you all don't have to go though this stuff any more. If it means making up for everything I've done, I'll take that risk."

Lee thought for a moment. The tone to Gaara's voice was a menacing one, the likes of which he hadn't heard for a while. He could tell that there would be no stopping the boy; he didn't realize that going out there would only cause them even more pain. So instead of just letting him go, Bushy Brow formulated a quick plan.

"Look, if you've really got your heart set on this, I'll take you up to the surface. But we need to have a good-sized team just to make sure we're safe, because you really have no idea how dangerous it is up there," he suggested.

Gaara gave a silent not, and followed Lee to the other side of the room. He was scouting for good reliable shinobi to help they on their journey. They didn't have to look for long, though, because they soon came across a few familiar faces.

"Hey, Shikamaru!" Lee said excitedly, running up to the laid back guy, "Did you know that Gaara really is back? The rumours are true, and he even has a plan to save us!"

Shikamaru sighed, "Well duh! Of course he's back, numbskull, he's standing right behind you."

Lee laughed nervously. This guy's attitude had always kind of freaked him out slightly, he was just too… cool. But he put those feelings aside for the time being; they'd need him for this, no doubt about it.

"Shikamaru, you look bored. We need to get to the surface, how would you like to come along?" he asked awkwardly, not able to fully suppress his nervousness.

"Why on earth would I want to go up there? Everyone knows how dangerous it is, teeming with the enemy," Shikamaru said dully, leaning back casually against the wall behind him.

"He has to tell Naruto and Temari something. I asked him the same thing… he won't really understand what we mean until we show him what the surface really looks like. And if we don't go with him he'll go alone, which would only hurt us more," Lee hypothesized.

Apparently his reasoning got through to the strange boy, for he agreed to help, saying, "Fine, I guess I could come along to save your asses. But it'll be so troublesome…"

Once they convinced Shikamaru to come the rest seemed as easy as a piece of cake. Soon the group of six was standing in front of one of the few desolate corners, working out a plan of action.

Though they were ready to go up to the surface many of them seemed slightly hesitant, but they didn't care in the least. They knew that once Gaara found the others he would share his master plan with them, and hopefully it would save them all.

::End of Chapter 11::

So, I typed all day to get this done on time...I've been doing so many other things lately, and this second Monday completely slipped my mind up until late last night! But it's done now, so you should all go and enjoy it if you want to.

Yeah...been really busy lately. Did a few oneshots, started a major zombie book (original), got pretty far in this fanfiction... I've been lacking on the writing of the novel that's going to get published, though, so I'm really not all that happy about that... but I guess that just means I'll have to do some hardcore writing so I can catch up. I'm about 6 or 8 chapters behind right now... so I'll have to work extra hard to meet the deadline I've made for myself.

In other news: TF2 (Team Fortress 2) is freaking awesome. If there are any of you who read this that have that game, feel free to add me to your friends or tell me of your account or something, we could play a match or two. I have no friends lol... but yeah, anyway. My name on there is randominuyasha. Just like here and everywhere else.

Well, I'm off for now, I have to get some typing done...I'm backlogged again and have over 80 pages to get done. Next chapter should be out in two weeks, for sure.


	12. The Search Begins

Chapter 12

"OH!" Rock Lee said suddenly, interrupting Shikamaru's explanation of how everything was going to go down, "Maybe we could take him to the project? And then from there we could venture out."

"Interesting. We come up at a safe spot, to make sure nothing bad happens right away. The extra work could be a bit troublesome, but… yeah, this will work to our advantage," Shikamaru agreed, much to Lee's surprise.

"But didn't Kakashi and Gai and Jariya tell us not to go up there? They'll be really mad if they see us up in that area of the surface," Hinata worried, tapping her index fingers together nervously.

"Keh. Does that really matter? If this works, everything will change and they won't need to be up there doing that," Kiba said confidently. He'd lost so much already; he was ready to risk what little he had left for the cause.

"And maybe they'll have some fresh food up there… I can't even remember the last time I had ribs or lamb or pork or… well, any meat!" Choji said, just the thought of such foods making his mouth water.

"Fine, whatever," Gaara hissed, wanting to get the show on the road, "Let's just get going. We don't have time to waste, the sooner we do this the sooner we can change the future so none of this happens."

They all silently agreed and despite the medical ninja's protests, decided to go to this secret project that Lee had spoken of. Gaara didn't know exactly what that was yet, but he didn't care; soon enough, he'd see it for himself.

If it helped them find Naruto and Temari, he'd gladly take the detour. And it looked like the vote was nearly unanimous, so he'd be seeing what was going on up there whether he liked it or not.

The six of them weaved in and out of the massive crowd, trying to be as stealthy as possible. It was had because of the sheer amount of people, but somehow they managed. Led by Rock Lee, since he seemed to be the only one who really knew where to go, they soon came across something that most of them didn't quite expect.

"OK," said the eccentric boy, "We're here."

Gaara looked around in disbelief. This section of the city-sized room was no different from any of the others; they were all just standing there staring at an ordinary, everyday old dirt wall.

"What d'you mean, 'we're here'? This is just an regular dirt wall," he pointed out, afraid that this was just a big waste of time, a secret plot to keep him busy until Naruto returned.

"You're wrong," Hinata said meekly, "It's a protective barrier made mostly of genjutsu, so the likes of us can't get in. I've been practicing with Byakugan, I can see it."

"Just what I expected, for something this secretive. Hinata, could you tell us where the seals are?" Shikamaru asked, letting everything mull over in his head. This would take some serious thinking ahead; they had to be ready for any given situation.

"Actually, there's only just one, probably to make it easier for the ones working up there," she stated, to the others' relief, "And it's buried in the wall over there."

She pointed to the wall to their right, and Choji started to walk to the spot she was pointing to. He was stopped by one of his comrades, though, for this guy wanted to put his unusual skills to good use.

He got right to work at the task. With the strength and precision he learned when he was younger he clawed at the dirt, gradually eroding it more and more. Soon enough, just as Hinata had said, he was standing in front of a white piece of paper with black writing on it, a pile of dirt behind him.

"Well, that was easier than I thought it'd be. Choji, you can take it from here if you'd like," he said, stepping aside. Grumbling slightly about how he'd been pushed aside so easily Choji took his place, ready to tear back the seal.

"When do I do it so we can go?" he asked, eager to get out of there to see if there would be any good fresh food up there.

"Sorry, Choji, but you won't be coming with us. We need someone to replace the seal when we're gone to cover our tracks. Did I forget to mention that?" Shikamaru said dully. This was such a boring situation for him, but it was better than his usual routine.

"YEAH, you did forget!" Choji exploded, though he saw that when going up against such a composed opponent there was no way to win. He pouted, "You'd better bring me back some of that food! Do you know how long it's been since I had a juicy red apple?"

"Alright, alright. We'll bring you back your precious food. Just pull the damn thing off now, waiting here like this is such a drag. And the sooner you pull it off, the sooner we'll be off to retrieve your food," the sly boy tempted, knowing what he had to do to get the guy motivated.

That was all it took to get the food crazy boy moving, and in the blink of an eye the pathway was revealed. Where there had just been solid wall there was now a stairwell that led to the surface.

"Thank you, Choji," Hinata thanked, as she followed the others into the tunnel. He nodded an acknowledgement and as soon as it was safe to do so he replaced the seal.

A few lights flickered on along the walls, illuminating the passage. They were about to start on their journey when another idea came to Lee's mind, one that really had nothing to do with their mission.

As he scooped up his companions and piled them all on his back Lee shouted, "If I cannot piggy-back my friends up these stairs as fast as I can, I will do one thousand push-ups!"

With that he bolted forward, running as fast as he could up the stairs to the top. The sudden motion added to the fact that they weren't very well on his back nearly caused everyone to topple off, but they managed to hold on.

Gaara asked the others softly so that Rock Lee couldn't hear, "Does he do this often? It's a little bit…odd."

"Yeah, old habits die hard, I suppose. This is nothing, he can get much more… troublesome…" Shikamaru confirmed with a sigh, as he bounced up and down on Lee's back.

"Shikamaru, that may be something of an understatement," Kiba laughed, "You should have seen what he did a few days before Gaara came back… unbelievable!"

They all had a quiet laugh, imagining what on earth it was that he could have done. It had been something outrageous, that was for sure. But although he'd made a fool of himself, he'd entertained other refugees in the process, something that everyone needed in these harsh times.

Lee turned his head slightly to look back at them, a confused look on his face. He'd heard a whispered conversation, and wanted to be a part of it; just because he was their transportation, that didn't mean he didn't want in on stuff.

"What was that? I thought I heard something," he grunted between breaths, completely oblivious to the fact that they'd been talking about him.

"N-nothing, Lee. We were just… filling Gaara in on a few things, is all," Hinata said shyly. She wasn't exactly lying, and the odd individual seemed to buy it completely.

"Oh…" he said slowly, "Well OK then. Since we don't have anything to do right now, that's actually kind of a good idea. Don't mind me, please continue."

They didn't talk much after that, staying quiet for the rest of the ride. They were nervous that he happened to overhear their conversation again and this time actually realize what they were saying, he might be offended. So until they reached the end of the stairs, only the sound of Lee's feet hitting the ground with each step filled the air.

The rest of the journey really didn't take all that long; Lee was even faster than at the Chuunin Exams. But it figured, for years had passed since then and with everything that had been going on, it was only logical that he'd have gotten stronger.

"OK, we're here," he announced, coming to a halt on the platform atop the stairs, "Beyond here is the secret project they don't want anyone to know about. I can't believe I'm finally going to see what's out there…"

"Great," Hinata muttered, tapping her fingers together. She was nervous of what would happen if they were caught. It was such a secret project, so the punishment had to be severe.

Gaara thought for a moment and said, "Say, Lee? If this place is supposed to be so top secret, then why do you know all about it? What makes you so special?"

"Well…" Rock Lee started with a laugh, "A while back I had asked Master Gai if he could train me for the day, but he declined. He told me he was doing something secret. Every once in a while after that, he would accidentally let pieces of information leak, and I just kind of put those pieces together."

"So just dumb luck, then?" Gaara probed.

Sounding just a little offended Lee replied, "Yeah, I suppose you could say that if you really felt like it. But right now, none of that really matters. Wasn't it YOU who was so desperate to find Temari and Naruto?"

He had a point. It was him who had gathered them all together, he was the one who had to give this important information to the two ninja. With a nod he backed down, letting them continue their business.

"Where's the door?" Gaara asked, noticing that once again there was no doorway in sight.

"I believe it's to the left of us," Kiba said, sniffing the door intently, "The wall must fall away there or something, because Kakashi's scent is all over it. He probably uses his ninja dogs to repair it every time or something."

It made sense, but that wasn't what Gaara was thinking of at the moment. This whole time he'd known something was odd, but he just hadn't been able to put his finger on it. Kiba's last statement made him realize what it was, and he was suddenly slightly shocked.

"Speaking of ninja dogs, Kiba… where's Akamaru? I thought you two were inseparable, but I haven't seen him the whole time I've been here," Gaara asked as Lee formulated a plan on how to get them to the other side of the wall.

There was a moment of silence before his answer came. With a clear amount of sadness in his heart and voice Kiba said solemnly, "We've all lost something in this war. I lost Akamaru; he died to save me, and had it not been for him being there, I'd be the one in the ground right now…"

Gaara shut himself up, and a tense silence filled the area. He hadn't known that it was that serious, but now it really hit him; everything had really changed drastically for the worse, and it was all because of him. He nearly regretted opening his mouth.

"I've got it!" Lee shouted enthusiastically in hopes of breaking the awkward silence. It was too serious for his taste and he'd started to feel uncomfortable. Luckily, though, he didn't only do it to bring life back to the group, but he really had found the way out.

Everyone immediately turned to him and he knew that his plan had been a success. They all asked in unison, "What've you got?"

"Stand back," Lee said, and they all obeyed. Without any warning other than that he sprang into action, revealing the doorway to the outside.

With one swift and powerful swing of his arm his fist powered straight through the dirt. Slowly at first, but with increasing speed, the wall around his fist fell apart and crumbled to the ground. He'd revealed a very short tunnel that led to the outside.

None of them said a word as they traveled through this last stretch of tunnel, they were suddenly just very excited. Soon they stood at the end of the dirt-filled underground passage, wondrous looks on their faces.

None of them could have imagined that this was what everyone had been up to, but now it was staring them right in the face. It truly was an amazing sight to behold, especially after being stuck underground for the most part.

::end of chapter 12::

Yeah, so it's here! Trying to re-introduce some of the characters, just to show how much the place and the people who inhabit it really have changed. And plus it's a way to get Gaara around instead of sitting there in the medical office for a few chapters, so it's all good!

Anyway...have a few more chapters of this that I only have to type up, so those should be on time. Kind of still procrastinating with my novel, which I'm still kicking myself for, but I don't know... I just really want to write other things right now, I suppose... my classes are going good; I'm ahead in english, some of the stuff we make in cooking is to die for, film is really freaking fun. The only one I'm not really fond of is SS.

But...yeah. For the most part everything's coming along good. And you know what I just remembered? I've been writing this story for a little over a year (but not really because I put it on hold for half a year to finish some other stuff)!

So chapter 13 should be up soon, in about two weeks. Maybe less, depending on how much I get done in the coming weeks. But if I were you, I'd just count on the two weeks thing.


	13. Picking up the Pieces

Chapter 13

With bright light suddenly shining on their faces they looked out at the immense landscape, the sun blinding them at first. It took Gaara a few moments for his eyes to adjust to the brightness, having been underground since he'd been there.

The sight that met their eyes was one of a spectacular nature, something they hadn't expected to see in the least. Where months ago – though Gaara had no way of knowing this – there had been nothing but barren land, long forgotten by the advance of man, there was now the sturdy beginnings of a new town.

Though they wanted to take a little time to take this all in, that wasn't meant to be at the moment. As should be with such a top-secret project like this, there was security to keep out unwanted people. Soon after emerging from the tunnel they were bombarded with shuriken and kunai.

Just in time they all backed into the tunnel, the razor sharp weapons missing them only by inches. Despite barely dodging this danger, though, they still had to be careful. Whoever was watching the entrance was now aware of their presence.

They all backed farther from the opening, just in case. When they found themselves back in the stairwell they assumed they were safe, their amazement clouding their thinking. It was a possibly fatal mistake.

"Damn, that was close," Shikamaru sighed, looking to the others, "Who's idea was it to just show ourselves so easily like that, anyway? That could have ended so much worse."

They all looked around the group for the culprit, but nobody stepped up to the act. They'd all been at fault, and after a moment or two they all merely shrugged.

"At least we're safe now. I don't think they really saw us come back in here and if they did, they haven't come after us yet. If they knew we were here then we wouldn't all be standing here talking, so we must be safe."

There was a moment of silence in which they all just stood there laughing to themselves, quietly so the guards outside wouldn't overhear them and so they could stay alert to their surroundings. It was broken only by something quite unexpected.

As they all stood there silently listening for any ninja who might have noticed their presence and was sneaking up on them, a voice from the shadows said casually, "Out of harm's way, eh?"

At the sound of the male voice the group all jumped, completely not expecting it. Their faces slightly pale they turned to where the voice had come from, thinking the worst. They were in trouble, no doubt about it, and their speculations of what was to happen to them cast nervousness upon the group.

Stepping out from the shadows the masked man asked them calmly, "So what're you all doing here? Surely you know that this area is off limits, so… you must be the enemy, am I right?"

"N-no! We're not those terrorists, I swear!" Kiba stuttered, blowing his cool guy act. He was starting to panic, thinking they just might be killed then and there for trespassing.

"Kakashi, you're not really that stupid, are you? You know it's just us," Shikamaru said just as calmly as his superior, if not more so.

"Yeah, I know. I'm just messing with you," Kakashi laughed, "If you were the enemy you wouldn't have shown yourselves so easily and you would have attacked instead of retreated."

Upon hearing that he was only joking around the group nearly dropped dead. They knew it was just like him to act in such a way, but in a situation like this, where the stakes could very well be high… to put things simply, such foolishness blew them away.

"But really though, what're you doing here?" the eccentric man asked suddenly, his laughter immediately ceasing. Now he was getting serious, or as serious as he could get. Though he was still fairly laid back, it was his job to deal with them properly.

"We have a visitor," Shikamaru said, stepping aside to reveal Gaara. He'd been standing behind the rest of them just in case the worst had happened; he had to be protected since he had the secret to fixing all this. When Kakashi set eye on the boy he smiled, though his mask hid the gesture.

The odd ninja said happily, "Ah, I'd thought as much. Word gets out pretty fast around here, you know. But that's not why I'm forgiving you for coming up here so easily. Usually coming up here at a time like this would have… severe consequences."

"So then why are we getting a special treatment? We're just like everyone else…" Kiba said suspiciously, silently convicting the man of more of his shenanigans. He figured it was a trap; it was just too perfect to be true.

"Why, Naruto, of course!" Kakashi smiled, "You're the reason he's finally up and around again. I went to see him, but just caught him and Temari on their way out. He said you'd probably be looking for him and would do anything to find him."

At the mention of the yellow-haired boy's name, Gaara gave a little hop. He inquired excitedly, "Naruto came through here? Where is he? I have something really important to tell him, and I have to do it soon!"

"Yeah, he came through here, but I don't know when he'll be back," the man smiled, "Before he left, though, he asked me to look after you should you come here until he returns, to ensure your safety. You're all welcome to come along too, seeing as you're already here."

The group nodded vigorously in agreement at this opportunity. Not only did they feel like staying outside with Gaara, but now they'd also get to check out what their superiors had been up to lately with Kakashi's protection.

With that Kakashi started the tour of this top-secret area, pointing out various things. The extent of this place and planning that had gone into it even now in the beginnings of its growth was even greater than what they'd first seen. The sheer expanse of it was enough to make a few of them blink in amazement.

All around them were the beginnings of many buildings; some were merely foundations while others were full-blown towers. It was really a sight to see, but observing all of these wondrous buildings instilled a handful of questions in the bunch of young shinobi.

Along the way they stopped at one of the few completed restaurants around, where they got something to eat and a chance to ask their guide what was on their minds.

"So what exactly are you doing here? Why go though al this trouble in such a dire time when you could be fighting?" Rock Lee asked as he eyed a bowl of ramen that the cook was whipping up. It had been so long since he'd had something like this to eat; since things had gone wrong, foods like this had generally become scarce, if not non-existent.

"The Sand Village wasn't the only civilization that was crippled by the Akatsuki, as I'm sure most of you know. The Leaf Village, even the Sound Village that Orochimaru himself created, they all came to be destroyed," the grey-haired man said solemnly.

As the cook placed the bowl of ramen in front of the starving tai justu user, he received many thanks. From there he went on to the next dish – he was only able to make one at a time since there wasn't yet electricity – and left the group of ninja to talk.

"So… you're building a new place for everyone to live, regardless of where they came from?" Kiba asked, and was slightly surprised when his suspicions were confirmed.

"Actually, yes. When it's completed this place will the home to shinobi from many villages. We'll maintain each of our own communities, just in one big group," Kakashi explained.

"Thank you," Hinata said quietly as the cook placed a steaming hot bowl of ramen in front of her. Through a mouthful of noodle she turned to the ANBU agent and tried to elaborate, "Well then wouldn't it be destined to fail? Not only would differences get in the way, but it would just be one big group of potential victims."

"Wrong," Shikamaru said abruptly before Kakashi could answer, "It would only be logical that if the different destroyed nations came together so would the various –Kages, creating a super powerful group of protectors to look after the villagers."

"Correct. And we've been thinking of calling this new super community 'The Village Hidden in the Truth', or something along those lines. We're also going to spruce up the underground to make it a mini-village of sorts. For evacuation purposes… we're still thinking on what to name that one," he confirmed, as two more bowls of ramen were served.

The conversation continued on, turning out to be quite lengthy. Through the duration of it, however, Gaara paid no attention. He'd heard enough, and had to let what he had heard mull over in his brain a little.

It really was true; his disappearance had caused this all to happen. He'd single handily robbed most of their freedom, and a good many others of their lives. Just the thought was enough to make him lose what little appetite he had.

Looking at his steaming bowl of ramen sadly, he pushed it slightly away from him. The others were all done theirs and he could tell that they wanted to get going. It was a very subtle motion, but one that Kakashi caught on to. He could only imagine what the boy was going through, and knew he had to do something to try to ease his pain.

"But enough of this place!" he said suddenly to change the subject, cutting Hinata off, "Gaara, I think we all have a question or two for you about your journeys. I hope you don't mind if we go ahead and ask away, do you?"

"I… I guess you can go ahead," Gaara muttered, unenthusiastically, shrugging. The sudden question had caught him off guard, but he could honestly care less, knowing he'd have to face what he'd done in both worlds eventually.

Lee was the first to ask him a question, "How was it? Where you went, I mean…what was it like? Where was it, even?"

He thought for a moment, trying to think of how to put if. After a few moments he told them all, "It was just really… odd. Unlike anything I'd ever seen. The people there were primitive and superstitious, but they had good reason for that I suppose."

"Good reason for being paranoid? What could that possibly be?" Kiba laughed, nearly spitting his ramen all over Shikamaru. What could justify paranoia like that when they obviously had it worse right there?

"Demons," his answer was simple, "Demons live all over in that land, roaming free. One convinced me to wreak havoc over there, this one particularly evil being. They seem to live to kill, wanting nothing more."

"Then that thing in the medical wing…" Shikamaru started, going into a deep train of thought. He'd seen Shippo earlier that day, and exactly what he was had completely baffled him; he'd never set eyes on anything like him.

Gaara nodded, "Yeah, but you all have nothing to worry about. Most demons from there it seems are evil, but a handful of them aren't. The people I brought back, they're trying to destroy an evil that's threatening their existence."

"Well that was very noble of you to bring them back here like that for treatment," Kakashi smiled, "It looks like they've seen better days battling that evil… you really helped them."

Gaara fell silent, hanging his head. It was because of him that these people were in this state, and he'd only brought them all here because his guilt and remorse had been too much for him to live with. If it hadn't been for those feelings, they'd most likely be dead by now.

The atmosphere of the place darkened dramatically right then, the vibes of the boy's gloomy mood seemed to be infecting everyone, a contagious disease. Thankfully it didn't last too long, though, for they soon got a few new arrivals.

In the distance they could see two figures jumping from structure to structure, heading their way. As they got closer they all got a good look at who was approaching. One was the man who had told Lee of this amazing place, and Gaara recognized his unique fashion sense right away, but the other he'd never seen in his life.

Landing in front of them, the older man said overenthusiastically, holding his thumb up goofily and giving them a sparkly toothy smile, "Hello, youth!"

Everyone but Rock Lee jumped back, more in disgust than surprise. Lee, reacting in the complete opposite way, leapt forward to hug the oddly dressed individual. He shouted lovingly, "Gai Sensei!"

The two hugged for what seemed like an eternity to the onlookers, but finally they broke apart. Gai and the younger man beside him had news to bring, and though the student and teacher were very fond of each other, this news had to be told.

"Naruto and Temari are on their way back now," the younger one said, giving them a warm-looking smile, "But he's still a dickless coward for pouting for so long."

Through saying that last statement his false smile remained, giving the sense that he didn't care about much of anything. He was about to tell them of the their current location, but didn't quite get the chance.

Gaara abruptly got up from his seat, lurching past Gai and Sai. Naruto was coming; he had to meet up with him as soon as me could to tell him of his master plan.

::end of chapter 13::

So, another chapter for you all do read! Woohoo for you! But yeah, anyway... this is really coming along really well. Still kind of neglecting my novel, but I've got some stuff on other fanfictions done, and of course I'm working hard on this one.

The chapters from here on out should (for the most part) be a bit longer, by about two or three hundred words. It's because I got a new pen (a really nice one with one of those jell pads for comfort) and it's a jell pen, so it has smaller writing. That means that there'll be even more goodness in every chapter!

And I've been getting a few questions as to when the Inuyasha gang will come back into play... In a bit. I just have to do a few things with Shippuden in general, and then we'll get to that. Believe me, what's happening right now ties into the story a lot, kind of bridges it all together a bit.

Anyway, english class is coming along pretty good. I'm in the high 'A's... but to be honest, I don't much like it sort of. All (well, it seems that way, anyway) of the people around me in that class shouldn't be there. I mean, I'm still learning and I know I'm not perfect at it and that I make -a lot- of mistakes, but seriously. I swear, they need to go back to grade school. If you're in grade 10 and don't know what 'sorrow' or 'widow' or which meaning 'too' and 'through' have, you REALLY SHOULDN'T BE THERE!!

cough cough

So yeah... had an awesome start to this year's Spring Break... I think this year I get a week and a half, which is nice. I'll be working full time for the next week and a half, though, so that will most definately reduce the time I had hoped to spend writing. But the start; it was made of pure awesome. With some money I got as an incentive from work I got DBZ season one, and watched it all in one sitting. Classic. I still have half of my energy drink and half of my snacks, and I hope to do it again in the next few weeks with a friend of mine; she would have come this time, but she had other plans.

Anyway... rant over. Chapter 14 should be coming out in two weeks, more or less.


	14. Mistakes and Oppertunities

Chapter 14

The others watched in surprise as Gaara bounded away, at first not realizing what was going on. After a few very short moments Kakashi was the first to react, knowing that he had to stop the boy.

"Gaara, wait!" he called out, keeping in mind that the boy could very well give them away in his desperate attempt to reach Naruto and Temari as fast as he could. That was a chance he didn't want to take; this was to be his new home, and endangerment by such an irrational young boy wasn't an option for him.

The red-haired boy ignored him, powering forward. Kakashi was fast, faster than him, but Shukaku took care of him; in the blink of an eye he'd erected a towering wall of sand, stopping the ninja in his tracks. Once he was on the outskirts of the new village he commenced his search.

"Naruto! Naruto, where are you? I have to tell you the plan, it's important!" he called as loud as he could, all common sense escaping him. He continued to sprint farther and farther away from the village, continuously calling out Naruto's name.

He didn't cross paths with them the entire time he was out there, didn't hear any responses to his insistent yelling. Kakashi had lost track of him thanks to his wall stalling him, now he was all alone. He didn't give up, however, and powered on. Soon he was wandering through the thick woods, deciding to take a bit of a rest.

"I'll just wait here for them," he muttered to himself, out of breath. He thought to do one last thing before he set about resting, and went ahead with it. Slowly he climbed a nearby tree, intending to use it as a lookout point.

He sat there up in the tree, resting but at the same time keeping an eye out for the ones he was pursuing. After a little while of regaining his energy he didn't see them, but instead heard something nearby.

A rustling in the leaves of one of the trees on the other side of the dirt path caught his attention. Concentrating on the spot it had come from he called out to whoever was there, "Naruto? Temari? Is that you?"

No answer met his ears, but still he didn't give up; no matter how slim the chances of it actually being them, he had to make sure. Leaning farther out to get a better look he continued calling to the creature in the tree.

As he was busy calling franticly to the other tree he was distracted, paying attention to nothing else. He never noticed the bark behind him twist creepily into the shape of a head, didn't see that something dangerous was about to go down.

While he was busy shouting away the head said quietly into a transmitting device, "He's here, we finally found him."

A hushed discussion took place among Gaara's yelling, a three person conversation between two people. Had Gaara not given up to rest a bit more and quieted down, he never would have been alerted of this guy's presence and things could have turned ugly.

"Yes, Shukaku's holder is standing right in front of us," the half of the man that was pure white in colour said calmly, keeping an eye on their target.

"Hurry up and get the hell over here so we can extract it! We've been waiting years for this, we can't take any more damn chances!" the pure black side of him said harshly, knowing that this was exactly what they'd been waiting for.

Gaara whipped around to face the head, jumping back slightly in surprise. The man was black on one side and white on the other, and looked like a Venus flytrap was eating him or something. He was Zetsu, the spy and hunter of the Akatsuki.

Of course, Gaara had no way of knowing who this person was. All he knew was that the odd man had said 'Shukaku' and 'extract' in a matter of a couple sentences. He could only be talking about him.

Gaara had no time to think, he just had to get away if he wanted to stay alive. Leaping from his perch in the tree, he quickly glanced back. The freakish head was still sticking out of the bark, making no attempt to go after him.

The others would do that just fine, he didn't need to worry about that.

At first Gaara heard nothing but his own panting as he ran along, but that false sense of safety was a luxury he soon didn't have. In the distance he heard the faint pitter-patter of other running, running after him.

Gradually the footsteps grew louder; they were slowly closing in on him. By the sounds of it there were at least four of them, all wanting to get their hands on the demon in his flesh. All he could do was keep running, running for the life he wished to keep in tact, and pray that they wouldn't succeed in their mission.

He ran and ran, for how long exactly he didn't know. All he knew was that he had to keep going, and that's exactly what he did; he couldn't let him get their dirty hands on Shukaku, not now.

After a while he began to run out of breath, but still he didn't give up. Lifting his head – it had been bowed for a while to let him go just that little bit faster – he looked ahead of him. On the horizon he saw the edge of the village. A new feeling of hope took hold of the boy; he might actually make it back alive!

As he ran franticly toward the beginnings of the new village, two figures became visible. There were running toward him, and as they neared each other he realized who they were.

They were Naruto and Temari, reluctantly coming to fetch him after he'd acted irrationally. He was happy to see them, but didn't stop to say 'hi'. He ran right past them, powering on toward the safety of the village.

"Gaara!" Naruto shouted as the boy ran right past him, slightly confused. The boy's pursuers had gone into hiding, and they couldn't see them.

He didn't know what was going on and stood there for a short moment thinking it over. However, he knew something was horribly wrong. Just to be safe he created a few shadow clones to keep an eye out, and then turned to follow Gaara. Something was out of place; he could feel it in his bones.

Soon he caught up to the boy, though only once they reached the village borders. By that time Gaara was pretty much worn out, though he still refused to stop moving. What could have him so spooked puzzled Naruto and Temari.

Their confusion soon changed to understanding suddenly, though, thanks to Naruto's thinking ahead.

When they finally got Gaara to calm down Naruto stiffened for a split second. One of his shadow clones had been destroyed, relaying what it had seen to him. A horrified look crossed his face; he knew that the rest of his clones would buy time, but that could only do so much.

Shoving Gaara away he said harshly, "Gaara, get in the cave, get a medical ninja, and get another shinobi, and get those people you brought here just in case. Keep safe!"

Gaara stumbled wearily into the stairwell, following Naruto's orders. He didn't need to be told twice, that was for sure. Naruto and Temari were soon left alone to discuss matters.

"Naruto, what is it?" Temari asked nervously. She hadn't seen him like this since Sasuke had joined Orochimaru's ranks, and it honestly frightened her a bit.

"Akatsuki," he said simply, "It's why he was running away from there, I'll bet. They found him and are coming this way…"

Temari gaped, "He led them here?"

"He was panicked, we can't blame him," Naruto said, then raised his voice a bit, "He probably doesn't even know it's them. All we can do now is protect him; we can't let them get Shukaku."

Temari nodded in understanding. Together the two decided to recruit Kakashi for the assistance they knew they'd need; if anyone could coordinate this, it would be him.

After hearing of the situation the ANBU ninja said calmly, "Well, that sure is unfortunate. We should do something… but all our efforts are focused on the village… we should still do something, though…"

"Gee, you think?" Naruto exploded, "We HAVE to do something! You've all worked so hard to build this place, we can't let them destroy it just like that!"

"Places like this are the least of our worries. We can always rebuild the village if they destroy it; what we can't replace is Gaara's life… and yours too. Don't forget, they're after both of you," the man told him sternly.

"Gaara is safe in the cave, and I can fight for myself!" Naruto countered fiercely.

Kakashi sighed, "Why must you be so stubborn? The Akatsuki have been waiting for this for years, they're probably sending their most skilled forces. Their last two targets are here in the same place. Whether we fight or not, they'll plough this place down; the only difference is if they get what they came for or not."

Naruto fell silent. He knew that Kakashi was right, though he didn't want to accept it. Now they had a dilemma; if they couldn't fight and their enemies would surely find the underground and come for them, what were they to do?

They thought for a moment of what to do. Temari was the first to speak.

"First we have to evacuate the village, that's for certain. After that… Gaara said he had a plan of some sort. I think this might be the best… possibly the only chance to do it," she told them.

They nodded, agreeing with her plan of action. It may be a shoddy one, and would depend entirely upon the one they were trying to protect, but it was a plan nonetheless. They had to give it a try.

Kakashi commenced the evacuation process, while Naruto and Temari made their way to the underground. Being that there were so little people occupying the village, it didn't take long for it to become deserted.

Very soon Naruto, Kakashi, Temari, and Sai were all looking for Gaara. On the way they passed Choji, who was whining to Shikamaru for the food he promised. They had no idea what was coming. They prayed that he'd followed Naruto's instructions and gathered those people, for they would be a key part of their survival.

They found him in the medical ward, talking to the ones he'd brought with them. They were well on their way to a full recovery, walking around even. With him he also had Sakura and Rock Lee.

Though Naruto and the gang had no way of knowing it, he was also thinking of putting his plan into action.

The group ran to Gaara, hope in their eyes. They had no forces; the Akatsuki had virtually wiped them out in their various encounters. This boy was their only hope now, their fate rested on his shoulders. He had to be the savoir of both their past and future.

Naruto really didn't have to say a word; Gaara could tell by the look in his eyes what he needed to do, and that he needed to do it as soon as possible.

"OK, so here's the plan: I'm going to–" he started, though he was cut off before he could finish the sentence.

"Gaara, we don't need time for an explanation," Sakura interrupted, "We don't have the time for it. They're on their way here, we have to go."

It was true; they didn't have much time at all. Naruto's shadow clones hadn't lasted long and already they could hear the village above them being destroyed, buildings toppling and hard work going completely to waste. They were advancing fast, time was running out.

It took a moment or two for the group of them to get organized, too much time. Just as they readied to take off the four members of Akatsuki that had been chasing them burst down the stairs, fierce looks on their faces.

"Go! Gaara, go now, or there won't be another chance!" Naruto yelled crazily, knowing that this really was their only chance to get away.

Gaara nodded franticly, focusing all his concentration on the time and place he'd been at before he'd come to the future. It took everything he had; never before had he transported such a large group, a group of ten people.

The sand began to envelope them, the enemy had spotted them. But they were too late. By the time they reached the large group the ninja had vanished, leaving behind but a small puddle of sand.

They cursed madly, lashing out at the ones in the underground. Once again they'd failed to capture Shukaku. When they finally left after killing and destroying to vent their anger the place was a mess, the blood from the dead bodies that scattered the flood mingling with the dirt around them to create a foul stench.

Gaara and the rest of them were safe, on their way to the Feudal Era. Gaara smiled to himself; since he hadn't explained the whole of his plan, the other ninja were stuck with him. They had no choice but to help him.

The warp in time and space spat the bunch out precisely where the boy had left. Blood and a bit of Shippo's insides still littered the ground, a sign that he'd gotten the time right as well.

Now that they were safe it was time to make things right. The only question was: How long would they be able to keep out of danger's path?

:end of chapter 14:

So, as many of you have voiced your want of the Inuyasha gang to come back in the last few chapters, I've decided to bring them back into play! WOOT! It was getting to be that time anyway, and to be honest I'm really stoked for what's coming next: a bit of randomness, an epic battle or two, possibly an attempt at some romance (though I kind of doubt it). Yes indeedy, there's lots yet to come; still a few twists to keep y'all entertained!

Anyway, life's OK. School's normal, blah blah blah. I think I've decided to put my novel to be published on hold for a little while, at least until I finish a few of my fanfictions. Writing two major fanfictions, a manga, and a novel is a little... I dunno... too much for me. I can't multitask to save my life, and throwing TF2 in there makes it even harder to stay on top of everything. And plus I just want to write this fanfiction in particular; I've got some neat things lined up for it still, and I want to get them in writing because some I've been too lazy to write down.

I think I might make a scedual for the novel, though... something easy, like a page a day. That way I'll get a bit done while also being able to work on this stuff, and I won't have to do too much at a time.

I'm getting really far with the writing of this, untpyed I'm on chapter 20 now. If I get enough done when I finish it up, I might post more than once every two weeks. I'm just doing this to make sure I stay with the deadline, because I sometimes find it hard to do everything in one week. I think that just might end up happening, though not at current time.

The stupidity of some people seems to be getting to me... since when is it 'cool' to steal the cookies someone just made in cooking class and eat them, afterwards denying that you did something like that? And when someone DOES do it (happened to me... no cookies/lunch for me that day), can't they at least have the smarts to hide the evidence? Having the bags they were in being thrown into the garbage right beside our group and having the cookies themselves on a plate where everyone could see wasn't the best idea. But it's not about the cookies... if your stuff isn't even safe in your own classroom when you turn your back for like... 2 minutes, that's kind of disturbing!

Ah well... hopefully they'll get their just deserts soon enough. This rant is officially over.

Just found out Green Day is making music under an alias, so I'm pretty stoked about hearing some new stuff from them. For all of you who might possibly be interrested, their new name is: Foxboro Hot Tub.

So yeah... look out for chapter 15, should be coming out in the next two weeks.


	15. Surprise Mission

Chapter 15

"Where are we, exactly?" Lee asked, as he tried to get his bearings and failed. He'd never been in this strange place before and was baffled as to how they'd gotten there in the first place.

"This is where I was before I got to your time," Gaara answered, looking around. The scene hadn't changed since he'd left it to get his new companions medical help, "Other than that, I don't know much about it. I'd ask her, if I were you."

He pointed to where Sango had been standing only moments ago, but found that she wasn't there. As he pondered about what could have happened to the girl, she stepped out from the trees opposite them, boomerang in hand.

She walked up to Gaara, bowing when she reached him. She said softly, "I never thanked you properly for saving us… you were under Naraku's control, so you really can't be blamed. Thank you."

She walked over to Miroku, who was standing at the other end of the large group. The two hugged, just happy to still be alive to spend another day together.

Gaara, slightly taken aback by her appreciative comments, said awkwardly, "Uhmm… It was nothing, really…"

For a moment everyone just stood there silently, until finally Miroku broke away from his lover to talk. He told everyone, "We're in Feudal Era Japan, somewhere outside Kaede's village. Gaara caused some chaos, causing a friend of ours to turn full demon… by the looks of it, barely any time has passes since that happened."

While he'd been recovering in the red-haired boy's futuristic world Sango had told him everything, leaving out not a detail. Though he didn't like what he'd been told he'd accepted it, moving on with his life and trying to think of a solution to this problem of theirs.

Everyone fell silent again for a moment, many hearing this for the first time. As they all thought it over Shippo hobbled over to where Inuyasha had transformed into a full demon, a plan in mind. He knew that before anything they had to fix this.

There on the ground lay the many pieces of Tetsusaiga, strewn over a fairly large area. He knew that if they wanted to save his friend they'd have to have his sword repaired so it could suppress the being inside of him that caused him to be so destructive, and with that in mind he began to round up the pieces of the broken sword.

He soon returned to the group with the shards of metal pooled in his coat, dragging the hilt behind him. He said to them all, "We should probably get these to Totosai soon, so he can fix it and bring Inuyasha back to normal."

The ninja looked at Gaara inquisitively. In near unison they asked him, "Is this some sort of rescue mission? We never signed up for this, rescuing the people you put in danger… we have to get back to our world to save our home!"

"You're all the ones who told me to get you out of there!" he countered, shaking his fist angrily, "This was my plan, and I tried to tell it to you, but you cut me off and told me to just go. Just like I changed the course of our history, I changed their future too. I have to make things right again for both our worlds, and until that happens, we're not going to fix ours."

"Gaara, this experience has really changed you," Naruto laughed, patting the boy on the back, "In such a short time you've grown up so much! Kankuro would be proud, no doubt about it!"

Gaara stood stunned for a moment or two. Had he really changed that much? He hadn't noticed it among all the chaos and general mayhem, but if Naruto had noticed the difference it had to be true. After a moment he smiled weakly.

Lee said enthusiastically, seeing that everything was fine, "Well then, let's get going! We've got some work to do, I'm sure!"

They all agreed, and were about to set off for Totosai's usual cave, when Miroku spoke up. He'd just thought of something, and felt that he had to voice his worries.

"We're so close to the village… I think we should check up on the status there before we do anything. With Inuyasha… full demon Inuyasha… on the loose, they might be in a spot of trouble. Just in case, I think," he suggested, hoping they'd all agree.

"It's basically on the way to his cave anyway, so I really don't see why not. It's not such a bad idea, actually," Sango agreed, nodding. Kaede had already been in pretty bad shape before they'd met Gaara, and now that a bloodthirsty Inuyasha was on the loose… it spelled trouble.

Reluctantly most of the ninja agreed; they just wanted their own future to be right again, as soon as possible. This whole ordeal was only prolonging their friends' suffering, yet they could do nothing about it.

The large group made their way through the trees, the village soon coming into view. As they got closer they saw that it was nearly deserted, an unusual thing to be sure.

Gaara hung his head in shame; the destroyed buildings reminded him of what he'd done to the people of this world, the pain he'd put them through. The others noticed his sudden change in mood but stayed silent, thinking of what he must be going through emotionally.

As they walked through the empty streets they looked around. They saw not a soul, but felt a very dark presence, something evil. Though they knew it was something horrible Sango led them on. She had a pretty good idea what it was, and just the fact that it wasn't moving anywhere gave her a bit of hope.

Soon they could hear voices, some angry and some calm. They were coming from the direction of the dark aura, reassuring Sango's thoughts. Following the voices they continued their advance upon them. As they went the voices grew in volume.

After a few short moments they were at the other side of the town, and found that quite the scene was waiting for them there.

Trapped in a light blue barrier was a frantic beast of a man, trying desperately to get out. His blood red eyes bright with an unknown rage he clawed at his prison walls fiercely, roaring. Inuyasha no longer had any control over his actions or mind.

Had it not been for the lady sitting at the base of the barrier he would be free to kill to his heart's content. She didn't want that to happen to those she protected, so she pushed her frail body to the limit trying to contain him.

As the group walked onto the scene nobody noticed them approaching. They were too busy either looking curiously at Inuyasha as he went crazy as if he was some sort of zoo animal, or arguing with the priestess who kept him contained.

"My children, get back. As long as ye stay here, ye be in danger. I don't know how long I can keep this barrier up, ye must leave now," she said hoarsely, wincing in pain. Combined with her previous injuries, this wasn't good for her in the least.

"Lady Kaede, I'm sorry… but I'm going to have to ignore your request. You're not in the best of health right now, and you need our support at the very least!" a nearby young man said, crossing his arms. He for one wasn't going to leave the only one protecting them for dead.

"Yeah, he's right! You need us as much as we need you. I'm sticking right here by your side," a young woman agreed, planting her feet.

Kaede smiled weakly, "I be touched by yer words. But do not worry for me, just get to safety. I could not live with myself should my faithful villagers get hurt. Please, ye must get as far away as possible, before I cannot hold him any longer."

The onlookers could see that her warnings and pleas were failing hopelessly, the villagers just sitting down around her to make a point. Miroku could see that her condition wasn't ideal at all. They all really were in danger.

He stepped forward, greeting warmly, "She's right, you know; you really are all in danger. But seeing as you won't leave, I suppose there's only one thing I can do."

The villagers all turned their heads to look at the monk, their determination filled faces slowly turning scared, fearful. At first Miroku didn't know what on earth was wrong, but that answer soon came easily enough.

One of the villagers jumped back in fear, pointing a shaking finger at the group. The middle-aged farmer yelled franticly, "Oh my Buddha! It's that monster from before, he's come back!"

"And he brought reinforcements! We're all going to die!" another screamed, suddenly bolting into the trees.

"And he's turned Inuyasha's friends into his allies!" yet another added, taking shelter behind someone near him.

They'd forgotten that something like this might happen, the villagers frightened to death of the one who'd attacked them. Their reaction was understandable, if troublesome.

"Ah, but please wait, kind villagers," Miroku laughed nervously, thinking of what to do to calm them down, "It's not what you think. We've not come to kill you, we just want to help. There's nothing to be afraid of!"

Needless to say they didn't listen and hastily fled the scene. Soon they were nearly completely alone, with only Kaede and the odd villager remaining. She would protect the village no matter what. They cautiously approached her, wanting to talk.

"He be the one who brought this devastation and terror upon us, this child," Kaede said slowly, eyeing the boy, "How do you know he's not… still dangerous?"

Sango rubbed the back of her neck nervously and said, "Just like how Inuyasha is right now, he too has a demonic side that broke loose. He should be all right now, though, because Naraku no longer has control over him."

Seeing as the old woman was stuck maintaining Inuyasha's barrier, she had no choice but to let the matter go and believe the words that were coming out of their mouths. She could only hope that they were right, for everyone's sake.

"Old lady, we've come to help. What do we need to do to get this guy back to normal?" Naruto asked, budding into the conversation. Though the group had already gone over that previously, he did it nonetheless.

"We need to get Tetsusaiga or whatever it is repaired… as the girl already said," Sai said, as she stared blankly up at the cloudless sky, "So we should probably get on that pretty soon so we can get our own future back on track."

They all agreed and were about to bid the old priestess farewell when something convinced them to stay just a little longer. Just as they were about to set off the woman faltered, wincing and groaning in pain. She had yet to fully recover from her injuries, and probably wouldn't for quite some time.

At the sound of her groan they all turned around to face her, noticing that as she faltered so did her spiritual powers, causing Inuyasha's prison to weaken. Too many times for comfort he came close to breaking free, the barrier just barely holding out.

"Lady Kaede!" Miroku cried, jolting to her side. He wasn't the only one who knew this was bad, but he had to help. If he didn't, Inuyasha could break loose and wreak havoc, destroying innocent lives for his own amusement.

"Here, I think I might be able to help you, Kaede. You don't mind, do you?" Sakura said, speaking up for the first time on their journey. She could see that the woman was clearly very hurt, and knew she could heal her at least a little bit.

Kaede nodded slowly; if it would make her pain go away so she could concentrate on the barrier, she didn't mind at all. Of course she was slightly nervous about it, with Sakura being a total stranger from who-knows-where, but she forced herself to get over it.

"OK, Kaede, where are you hurt?" she asked, a kind smile on her face.

Motioning to her side Kaede said, "The boy struck me at my side, ripping me open. I don't know anything else because that's when I blacked out. Next think I knew I was being buried… the villagers then just bandaged me up, not knowing any better."

"I see… no cleaning of the wound or internal inspection," the young lady said softly, more to herself than anything. She soon turned back to her patient and said, "If I'm correct, which I believe is the case, this will only hurt a little. Just focus on maintaining that thing, alright?"

Needless to say the aged priestess agreed, and the procedure began. A light blue light surrounded the girl's hand as she very slowly moved it over the wound, healing it. She focused a good amount of chakra into it, for the woman had a tad of internal damage done to her as well.

Much faster than it would have taken for the injury to heal naturally, it was sealed and barely visible. Her wounds had been healed, but her faltering didn't seem to cease. Between the pain and amount of energy she was using to uphold the barrier, it had left her very weak.

"All done," Sakura smiled, pulling her hand away. Before she could get up Kaede started to tip over. She was nearly unconscious, yet she refused to let the barrier die; she didn't care if it would be the death of her, she would use her spiritual energy to protect the inhabitants of the village.

Miroku steadied her, making a decision. If they left her along like this Inuyasha would surely break free. He knew he had to stay behind to help keep Inuyasha's containment chamber up and keep everyone safe.

Assuming his usual 'barrier-making' position he said to the others, "I'll be staying here with Kaede… there's no way everyone will go unharmed if we leave her like this."

:end of chapter 15:

So, here it is! We're now officially back in Inuyasha's world! Cheer everybody, cheer for your life!!

So yeah... I honestly didn't think I was going to get this one up on time. I've been focusing on other things lately (after class filming, some not-so-nice dreams, general other stuff) and actually completely forgot about it until a few hours ago. So I typed it up real fast so I could get it out to all of yous for your reading pleasure.

I actually don't have much to say about this chapter... I suppose it's pretty self-explanitory. Next chapter will be a bit of a filler, but only for the later part of it. It'll still have a few important things in it, so I would recommend reading it as well. You'll see the reason behind the half-filler-ness soon enough. And then after that I have up to chapter 21 done (just have to type it out). I figure there will be at least 29 chapters in total, maybe 30 or 31 if things get to be a tad too long. Either way, there's some pretty awesome stuff coming up.

SO! Chapter 16 will be coming out in two week's time!


	16. Searching for the Demon

Chapter 16

"Staying behind?" Shippo asked curiously. The people he was going to be traveling with scared him slightly because they all looked so mean, and he was kind of nervous about not having his own companions with him.

"Shippo…" Sango started, worrying for her adolescent friend, "I think it would be best if you stayed behind as well. I have a feeling things will get ugly on our end and I don't want you to get hurt in the process. Besides, I have all these guys to protect me as we go."

The fox demon thought for a moment. Just imagining what might lie ahead on this mission, paired with the fear of his new teammates, was enough to make him want to curl up into a ball and hide.

With a gulp he nodded, moving to sit between Miroku and Kaede. He worried slightly about Kagome, but soon convinced himself that once they returned Inuyasha to normal they'd successfully rescue her.

Lee, motivated by their care for each other and devotion, stepped forward. He said with a tear in his eye, "I'm staying too! I just can't let you stay here with no protection… what if something happens when they're all away?"

He ran heroically to their side, turned, and flashed the rest of the group a spectacular thumbs up. He'd made his decision to stay behind with the others and miss the action that would surely happen, and was in a way proud that he could be a part of this adventure in his own way.

"So then it's just me, Gaara, Sai, Sakura, and Sango coming, right? It's probably better that way… with any more people stealth would probably be a lot harder," Naruto commented, looking around. In a matter of minutes the group had shrunk suddenly.

"Nearly all of us…" Sango corrected softly, "When we left here with Gaara I sent out a friend of mine to follow Inuyasha and keep a good watch on him. If… if she's still alive, she'll be coming too."

The whole time she'd been in Naruto's world, while she'd been obsessing over Miroku and Shippo, he hadn't for a second forgotten about her dear friend, Kirara. All the while she'd been worried for the cat demon's well-being, hoping with all her heart that she hadn't run into too much trouble.

So far, since the moment they'd gotten back to the place that was so familiar to her, she hadn't seen any sign of her friend whatsoever, aside from the tracks from when she'd first sent her away. She had to find out once and for all if her faithful companion was still around, and before they did anything else.

She called out, hoping more than anything that she'd get an answer, "Kirara? It's me, Sango. If you're still out there, please come out here, Kirara!"

There was a moment of tense silence while they all waited, and it was clear that the young lady was on edge. With each passing second she grew more and more nervous, starting to lose hope just the slightest bit. If sending her beloved companion away had led to her death, Sango didn't know how to react or deal with the guilty emotions.

They were beginning to think that something really had happened to the cat demon and were nearly ready to give up when something restored their spirits. Out from the trees on the other side of Inuyasha's barrier stumbled Kirara in her normal form.

"Mew…" she said softly, alerting them of her presence. Slowly she made her way to her friend, hobbling horribly.

Everyone could feel the joy radiating from her as she lunged to hug her pet, tears flowing from her eyes. Seeing her dear companion alive and safe was more than she could wish for right then, and her happiness consumed her.

"K-Kirara! You're s-s-s-safe! I'd thought that…" Sango sobbed, a bit choked up, as she took the furry being in a loving embrace. As he hands closed around Kirara she felt a warm liquid substance splattered across her fur.

"Mew… mew…" the creature whimpered as Sango fiddled around in her fur, trying to determine what it was. Though the girl didn't realize it at first, she was putting her friend through a bit of pain.

"You're hurt… you must have run into a bit of trouble, eh? Well you're all right other than that, though, right?" Sango asked, petting her head gently. She then turned to Sakura and inquired, "Would it be possible for you to heal her, too? It looks like they're only flesh wounds, and to be at the top of her game she'll need this."

The look in Sango's eyes, one of pure love and agony at seeing her friend like this, was something Sakura found she couldn't say 'no' to. She held up her hand, healing chakra resonating from it, and placed the palm of her hand over the cat demon.

Sango had been right, they were all merely deep cuts and scrapes, all with no permanent damage besides a scar or two. They were easy enough to heal, and she was soon as good as new. When she withdrew her hand Kirara sniffed around. Never before had she been healed like this, and it amazed her.

The cat demon smiled, running around. Still she felt a bit of pain when she walked, though it was nothing compared to before. She was just happy to be able to prance around again. When she was done dancing around the group she hopped up onto Sango's shoulder, mewing and licking her cheek.

"Thank you so much!" Sango said happily, wiping the tears from her eyes. Now not only did she have her companion back with her again, but she was also as good as gold.

"Aw, it was nothing, really," the medic smiled, blushing slightly. She liked to see the people she helped happy.

"This is all real nice and all, but shouldn't we get going?" Temari said bluntly, breaking up the slightly mushy moment, "It's only logical that every moment we stand here doing nothing like this, the harder it'll be to obtain the goal."

"She's right, you know. The prostitute is right," Sai said emotionlessly, putting on another one of his fake smiles. Temari, who would normally wouldn't be bothered by this type of thing, fought back the urge to bop the guy a good one.

Kakashi smiled, although nobody could really see it, and told them all, "Great, then let's get going. Sango, if you would be so kind as to point us in the right direction."

He knew as well as the Sand ninja that lingering there would only delay how long it would take them to save their own world, something he wanted to do just as much as the last guy. With that in mind, he wanted to get moving.

They all nodded and before they set off Naruto retrieved the many pieces of the broken sword from the fox demon.

They all said their goodbyes and left, making their way to Totosai's place of work. He was (to Sango's knowledge) the only one who could repair the legendary blade that acted to suppress Inuyasha's demon blood and keep them all safe.

They had a fair bit of traveling to do, so they decided to get to know each other a little bit along the way. After all, Sango had just been placed in a group of random people, most of which she'd never met before even briefly. If she was expected to work as a team with them, she wanted to know a little bit about them.

"So…" she started, looking around at the group of eight, "It's going to be a little while before we get to his house… why don't you all tell me a bit about yourselves? I don't even know half of your names, so you really can't call this a proper team."

"Young lady, you're completely right," Kakashi agreed, nodding his head.

They all kept walking, a slightly awkward feeling in the air. Nobody really knew what to say or how to start this off; they hadn't been asked to do introductions like this since their early years at the ninja academy.

Finally Sai spoke up, "I'm Sai, and I specialize in ninjutsu. I haven't seen too much about you yet, but I'd say you care about your 'friends' too much, which definitely takes its toll and makes you weaker than you should be."

A shocked look crossed Sango's face. He'd said such a rude comment so casually, closing his eyes and smiling while he did. The boy reminded her of Sesshomaru, so calm and collected at any given moment.

"Now come, Sai, you know that's no way to talk to someone. Please be a little… nicer toward our new teammate," Kakashi scolded, and then turned to Sango to introduce himself, "I'm Kakashi, an ANBU agent. Going into a fight I'll do whatever it takes to keep my comrades safe. My sharingan allows me to specialize in genjutsu, the art of illusion, as well as ninjutsu."

The shocked expression turned to one of wonder. She couldn't explain why, but this man seemed to intrigue her. Maybe it was the way his hair was neat but messy at the same time, or that look in his eye, but for some reason this man seemed dreamy in her eyes. But she shook those feelings off before they went any farther, though, looking to the girl for her introduction.

She willingly obliged and said politely, "They call me Sakura. Before she died, the village leader, Tsunade, trained me in the art of medicine and taught me how to really fight. You don't need to worry if you get hurt… I can fix you up no problem."

"And if those numbskulls do anything idiotic, they'll know who'll kick their asses!" Inner Sakura added fiercely, though nobody but the pink-haired ninja could hear it.

Sango smiled warmly. Knowing that such a kind person would be watching her back reassured her to no end. She told the girl, "I don't plan on getting injured any time soon, but having you backing me up makes me worry a bit less."

There was another brief moment of silence as everyone walked along. They were getting close, and Sango knew it. She could hear the old demon pounding away on some metal, the soft ting sound he created riding on the wind.

She turned to the others, announcing their current status, "OK, everyone… I already know you three a bit–" she pointed to Naruto, Temari, and Gaara, "–and we don't have too much time left until we get there, so we'll probably have to cut this short."

Naruto was about to say something in protest but Sakura saw it coming and bopped him a good one on the head to stop him. As Naruto rubbed the bump on the back of his head Sakura said happily, "So now you know a bit about us, but what about you? You haven't told us anything about you yet."

"Well, my name's Sango," she laughed, "I'm a demon slayer, and this boomerang here is my weapon of choice. The demon who took Kagome also has my brother hostage, and it's my ultimate goal to save him… and rid the world of this scum's presence."

The all fell silent, not knowing what to say. They hadn't realized that the situation here was so similar to their own. They didn't have all that much time to contemplate the matter, though, for they could now see the cave in which the old demon lived.

"Totosai! Totosai, we have a favor to ask, and it's really urgent," Sango called out as they neared the cave. They received no answer and continued on toward the entrance.

Though Sango knew the old demon wasn't hostile, she and the others used caution when approaching the doorway. When he was hard at work he could get unknowingly dangerous, completely absorbed in his task at hand.

Sango, who was at the front of the group, was the first to poke her head into the cave. It was then that she was thankful she'd been so cautious up until that moment. Only a few seconds after she's shown herself a giant train of fire came powering toward her.

With a bit of a squeal she jumped back just in time, the mass of fire powering past her. She could feel the intensity of the controlled inferno, could have sworn some of her hair had gotten singed.

As she hit the ground hard she let out a sigh of relief. It had been a close call, but she was safe, unscathed for the most part. A bit shaken, she turned to the others and smiled nervously.

"I think he's home…" she started, as she got up, "So we can all go in, but I suggest you still be careful. I don't know if he'll exactly take kindly to my bringing you here. If all goes well, though, this should all turn out perfectly, the way we planned."

The others nodded, waiting for her to make the first move. Since she was the only one there that knew the people and terrain of this area, she'd be in charge for now.

Once the flames receded they ventured forward. They saw him pounding on a slab of bright red metal, shaping yet another elegant sword for one of his customers. He was focusing on this work of art and nearly didn't notice them coming in.

"Totosai, we have a huge favor to ask. Please, Inuyasha's gone full demon and we need your help to repair his sword so we can bring back his humanity. You're the only one who can do this," Sango pleaded, wanting only to save her friend.

The demon looked around tat the group before saying simply, "Sorry, no can do."

:end of chapter 16:

So, here's chapter 16 for all of yous to read! Hope you like it... at least I know I sure do... kind of.

This is kind of half filler, I suppose. Just thought it would be logical for them to do the whole introduction thing since working with people you don't even know could end up being pretty tricky. It may have flopped, but... whatever. It had to happen in my opinion, and now it has, so they're all set to go. Or are they? Dun dun dun...

But yeah... things in school are going well... I'm ahead in nearly everything, so I've had a lot of free time. With that free time I've been trying to type up more of NinjaDemon, so that I can have it all nice and done up and ready to post when the time comes. I can tell you that in a month or so there will most likely be a double feature, to make up for the week I'd miss because of my birthday. Sweet sixteen, here I come!

As some of you may know, the Day of Silence was last Friday. It's an anual event in which participants wear read to show their support and/or refrain from speaking for the entire day. It supports those who are continuously silenced because of their sexual orientation, and don't feel safe in school because of it. I helped to organize it at my school... we got an article in the local paper and everything, so I'd say it was pretty successful. I'm glad I could do something... I know how it feels, and it's not nice. Unfortunately, the teacher that organized it was... less than awesome. If she complains about how it could have been better or something, I'm out of there; I spent over 9 hours working on it (in one day, skipped the classes I had), so I don't need that.

Umm... yeah. That's about all I have to say right now, really... the action starts again (really) in a few chapters. I know I keep saying that, but it's true.

Chapter 17 should be out in two or so weeks, so look forward to that.


	17. Impending Doom

Chapter 17 Chapter 17

"What d'you mean, 'no can do'? Totosai, we need you to do this! I don't know how long Miroku and Kaede can keep him contained," Sango burst, hardly believing what she was hearing.

He knew just as well as she that Inuyasha had to be reverted back to his half-demon state before things got completely out of hand, yet he refused to take any part in making that happen. As Sango soon discovered, the old demon had a viable reason for it.

With a sigh he told her, "You're forgetting something: to repair this sword I need a bondant… more specifically, one of Inuyasha's teeth. And since he's obviously not here and not in the right condition to just go plucking teeth, the task you're asking of me is impossible."

She bowed her head, knowing he was right. In her rush to save Inuyasha she'd forgotten that fact. Looking at the others she said sadly, "I was hoping to help Inuyasha first so he could help us save Kagome… but now we need Kagome in order to save Inuyasha."

It seemed to hopeless, but the others didn't want to look at it that way; not only did they not know Naraku's power, but they generally didn't want to stand giving up. Sai told her with one of his fake smiles plastered on his face, "Hey now, it's not good to give up. I'm sure we can free the wench we need to save that idiot."

"I suppose you're right…" Sango started, slightly offended by his comments. She ignored her irritation, though, and thought hard, "How well can all of you fight? We might have a chance if…"

"Pretty well, if I do say so myself!" Naruto boasted, striking an epic pose. He'd just recently become active again, and was already full of himself.

"But seriously, though, we can be pretty efficient if the time calls for it," Kakashi added coolly. He knew where she was going with this, and since they couldn't return to their own world, he was fully prepared to take on this new mission.

"Great. But how on earth will we find her? It's taken us months to find Naraku before… we have to find a faster way, or we'll never make it in time," the demon slayer worried, going over the possible options in her mind.

After a short moment of thinking Kakashi asked her, "Do you have anything of hers on you? Anything at all? My dog-nins are particularly good at tracking and could most likely find her, especially if she was just taken away recently like you've said."

"I… I don't know…" the girl said softly, as she rummaged through her belongings. A couple minutes later she held up a cloth and reported, "I do! It's from one of the boxed lunches she always makes for us. I've been meaning to throw it out lately, but it always seems to slip my mind."

"Then I guess it's a good thing you kept forgetting then," Temari said with a smile. Now they had another lead, and although they were stuck in this strange world until her brother felt like it, she didn't mind all that much anymore. In time they'd get to their own problems and fix the world of the ninja, but for now they had work to do right here.

As she dangled the checkered piece of fabric in the air Kakashi nodded. Making the correct hand signs he slammed his hand to the ground. At first nothing happened, but momentarily the effects of his summoning could clearly be seen.

A puff of smoke erupted in their faces suddenly and when it cleared they saw a single dog sitting where the man had touched the ground. The dog looked around groggily, his short brownish-grey fur giving him the look of a grumpy old man.

"What d'you want? You know I'm supposed to be sleeping right now so I can keep watch tonight!" the pup complained, not taking notice of Sango standing behind him or his surroundings. In his years of fighting this war he'd become uptight and irritable.

Upon hearing the dog speak Sango jumped back in surprise. She'd seen larger-than-life demons and things that no human should ever set eyes on, yet something as small and simple as a talking dog freaked her out slightly. She stuttered, "It s-s-s-spoke! That d-dog really spoke!"

The pug turned to face her, then looked to its master and asked, "Geeze, what's her problem? Hasn't she ever seen a ninja dog before? She must be a real flunky at the ninja academy if she doesn't even know that."

"Stole the words right out of my mouth," Sai smiled. Since the dog had grown impatient and generally unpleasant to be around, he found that he got along with him a lot better. He made some good insults at times.

"Now, now. Settle down, you two. We don't need to start a war here as well," Kakashi sighed, "Sango, this is Pakkun, the one who can find your friend. Pakkun, this is Sango. I called you here because we need you to help us help her."

"And why exactly should I help this girl? I have better things to do, like protecting virtually the only free village we have left. I'd say that's a cause much worthier than helping finding some random stray on a whim," the dog said uncaringly, sticking up his nose. He didn't have time for this nonsense.

"Because you know the village you were protecting? It's gone! While you were asleep the Akatsuki came for us thanks to Gaara. We had just enough time to flee here. And if everything works out the way we plan, we can prevent that war from happening in the first place!" Naruto explained enthusiastically, smiling.

"And this girl's not a stray, and neither is her friend. She's going to be helping us," Gaara added evilly, sticking up for Sango. He'd already hurt her enough, he didn't need others picking up where he left off.

"Gone? Akatsuki? Then wouldn't they have both of you now?" Pakkun muttered. Suddenly he'd become confused, being randomly pulled into this awkward position. He didn't know what to think, or whether or not he should believe the words coming out of their mouths.

"Like Naruto just said, we had barely enough time to get away. Gaara managed to bring us here right before they were about to capture the two of them, bringing us to Feudal Era Japan… whatever that is," Temari explained.

"There's no way they can follow us… and Gaara refuses to let us go back to correct our world until he rights the wrongs he did here, so we have to help. And to succeed in that, we need your assistance," Sakura added.

"Well, I suppose I have no choice but to help, then. I still don't believe you, but I don't know what to believe any more," the dog sighed, "So, what d'you need me to do?"

"We need you to do what you're best at, tracking down someone. Her name's Kagome, and she's a good friend of mine. I have something of hers right here, so you should be able to pick up her scent. And thanks very much for helping us, by the way," Sango said, assuming that tracking was his most skilled ability. He held out the clothe for him to sniff.

He took a big whiff of it, and almost immediately found what he was looking for. He told them, "Got it… and man, is that girl a good cook! If her stuff smells this good, I can just imagine what it tastes like… after you all save her, you'll have to get her to make me some. But that's beside the point; when will you be ready to leave?"

'If you're up for it, old fart, we're ready to go right now," Sai said casually to Kakashi's small friend, hinting at how his greying fur was making him look so much older than he really was.

Pakkun seemed to take offence, but he didn't show it. Instead he bolted forward, immediately starting the search. He'd show that rude young boy what he could really do, prove that he was still as efficient as before.

Everyone followed suit, everyone except Sango and Kirara. There was no way the girl could run as fast as the ninja, so she turned to her faithful companion with a plan of action in mind.

"Kirara, thanks for staying calm through this… I'll bet is must be kind of weird for you… heck, it's weird for me! Now how about we show them what we can do… let's go rescue Kagome!" she said with a determined fierceness to her voice. Things were really starting to look up now, and her confidence was returning.

"Mew, mew!" the small demon said just as confidently, transforming into her other form. She knew what she had to do without Sango saying it, and she was psyched to prove the others' suspicions wrong. She could tell they didn't think much of her, but she would show them that she wasn't just a deadweight.

Once she was ready Sango hopped aboard. The two rose into the air so they could easily locate their teammates, and soared above the treetops. Soon they spotted the group of ninja jumping from branch to branch in pursuit of Kagome's scent, led by the dog.

Following them closely from the air she tried to figure out where they could be going. As she pondered the matter she also wondered if the others would realize that they were up there above the treetops.

Giggling slightly to herself at the fact that they hadn't yet noticed the two of them up in the air Sango called down to them, "Hey, where are you leading us? Are we getting close at all?"

Most of them jerkily moved their heads to look at her, surprised to see that she was suddenly flying above them. The shock wore off fairly quickly, though, and they went about their chase.

Naruto, who was relaying the information from Pakkun to the black-haired girl, called up to her, "We're getting closer, he says. The scent's getting stronger, but we still have a ways to go still."

"Great," Sango exclaimed simply. Soon they'd find Kagome and be able to revert things back to their normal state again.

:Change of time:

"Everybody stop now," Pakkun instructed, coming to a halt at the edge of the forest. He was still in war mode and was being ultra cautious, which wasn't exactly a bad thing considering they were essentially hunting Naraku.

"What is it? Are we close?" Temari asked curiously, looking around. She was excited, but at the same time she couldn't help but have a bad feeling about what was to come. She didn't believe in bad omens, but this feeling was just slightly overpowering.

"Yeah, we're here all right. But I'm afraid I can't take you any farther," he said. Knowing that they'd ask 'why' he continued, "An overwhelming smell has just blocked out her scent. I don't know what it is, bit it's the closest thing to evil I can think of. The point is, this is as far as I take you."

"Oh yeah, that definitely means we're close. It's Naraku, no doubt about it," Sango seethed, Kirara bringing her to the ground to meet up with the others. She clenched her fists. It wasn't Pakkun's inability to lead them any farther that convinced her that they were, in fact, at their destination; she could feel an overwhelming presence, one that could only belong to her archenemy.

"Well then, I'll be off. This place is really making me uncomfortable… and besides, I should probably check with the others to verify your story, however horrendous it may be," the small dog said slowly, just before vanishing in another puff of light grey smoke. They were on their own now to deal with this evil being.

"OK, so I suggest we continue to proceed with extreme caution. We have no idea what exactly we'll be facing, and we don't want to mess up now that we've come this far," Kakashi suggested, as he began to creep forward.

The others followed, as quietly as they possibly could, out into the open space beyond the trees. Naruto thought to say something but decided against it, figuring that it most definitely could wait.

As they slowly emerged from the tree infested area the space in front of them seemed almost like a mirage, a solid image that seemed just a bit off. The scene was one were trees were all around them just like before, but they could tell that there was something abnormal about the place.

As they walked farther out into the open space it was clear that something really odd was up; the closer they got, the more the trees in front of them twisted and became disfigured. Soon they were so deformed that they couldn't get much worse, being nearly a giant blob of green and brown, at which point they started to disintegrate.

"A hologram," Sai muttered as the trees disappeared one by one, "And a shoddy one at that. I mean, it's just falling apart! For an ultimate evil, he's pretty crappy at what he does."

Sango knew better, though. He'd never slip up like this if he didn't have a good reason to do so. She told them softly, a fearful nervousness to her voice, "He's not doing this by accident. There has to be a reason… he must be trying to mess with us or something."

"He's good at that…" Gaara muttered, the thought bringing back some not-so-pleasant memories, "He's very crafty that way. Gets under your skin and takes advantage of people so they can do his bidding for him."

The trees continued to disappear, gradually revealing an insanely different scene. There stood a medieval looking castle, as they saw when the foliage was completely gone. It was a magnificent structure, but from it an evil aura was radiating.

"Naraku's castle… or one of his many, anyway," Sango gaped, almost not believing her eyes. It had taken them months, years, to track him down to no success, yet now that he had Kagome hostage, they'd found him in a mere few days.

This was it; they were going to storm the castle and save Kikyo's reincarnation so she, in turn, could save the half-demon. And if everything went as Sango hoped it would, they'd also get a shot at destroying their archrival.

With a nervous sigh Sango turned to the others and smiled weakly, "OK, it's now or never. Let's go."

:end of chapter 17:

Oh, things are about to get very fun! You'll never guess what will come next, you really never will! I've got quite a few things planned for this part of the fanfiction, I'll tell you! Lots of twists and turns and characters and fights and and and. There's just so much!

IRON MAN WAS FREAKING AWESOME. I'M ONLY SLIGHTLY ADDICTED! Also, the updates for TF2 are freaking amazing as well... they renewed my addicted... though, it never really went away in the first place. Still, I'd say overall the last two weeks have been generally good... movies and games, and I got more writing done... it's all good.

Anyway, now that that's over... yeah. Things are going pretty smoothly over here. I've got a nice amount of chapters done for this fanfiction, and all I have to do is type them up. If I can do that swiftly enough, I may shrink the wait time for each new chapter... because I really hate to leave you guys on such cliffhangers (but not really... it's all good). I just want to get them up so I can rest easy and stuff.

Mother's day was... interesting. I had to work and there was a line up out the door for half the day, a constant stream of people. I'm getting exhausted just thinking about it...

And OMG, something amazing! Of all the grade 10's in my school, I have the second highest grade right now! So happy!

So yeah... chapter 18 should be up in two week's time for you all to read, so look forward to that.


	18. The Chase begins

Chapter 18

Knowing there was nothing more she could do for the time being, Sango told the others, "I guess you guys are really up now. Other than identify people and tell you a few things here and there, there's not much I can do at this point."

She stepped back, allowing one of the ninja to step up. Kakashi, being experienced in the leadership area, was the one to volunteer.

"OK," he said, nodding to Sango, "So this place looks pretty big… far too big for just one group of our size. We'd make too much noise as we are now and our position would be easily given away."

"But if he revealed his castle, wouldn't that mean he already knows we're here? In that case, the size of our group wouldn't really matter all that much," Sakura pointed out, guessing right.

"In most likelihood," Sango started, nodding slowly, "That's exactly right. Naraku is the type that messes with your head. He wants us to know that he knows we're here… but I can almost guarantee there'll be traps. It's just the sort of thing he'd do."

"Then let's scrap the separate groups idea. We'll be more powerful like this anyway," Naruto said loudly, a determined look in his eyes.

They all agreed with that, and decided to ditch the 'two groups for stealth' idea. There was just one issue now: how would they find Naraku? To search the entire castle as one group would take weeks, maybe even months. There had to be a better way.

Sai was the first to make a suggestion. And they all had to admit, it was a pretty decent one too.

"I could paint some scouts and have them search for him. It'll at least halve the time we spend looking, and at the same time we'll possibly find the girl. On top of that, we wouldn't be putting ourselves in unnecessary danger," he suggested, taking out one of his scrolls and a paintbrush, ready to get started.

He asked her to describe the target, so his scouts would know exactly what to look for. The image vivid in her mind, Sango told him. Once he had enough information he began to scribble dozens and dozens of mice on the paper. Sango looked on in confusion, not knowing why he was drawing such pictures.

Soon the better part of the scroll was filled with pictures of mice, and the put his ink and brush away. For now the amount he'd made would suffice, and serve their purpose quite well.

Clasping his hands together in an odd way and bowing his head slightly he muttered something to himself. His words could barely be heard, but what they made possible was almost immediately visible.

The ink began to lift off the paper, still retaining the shape he'd given them. While the others looked on like this was a normal occurrence, since for them it was, Sango jumped back in surprise; nothing like that had ever happened in this world that she knew of.

Sai laughed at her, making a witty comment about how she was frightened by such a normal thing. She didn't take offence and instead calmed herself down; his rudeness was becoming a common thing that she'd have to put up with, and she was determined to not let it get to her.

The mice looked around, awaiting their orders. Sango stared at them in amazement. She didn't know how he'd made the mice come alive, but he had and now they were… well, alive in a sense.

He sent them off, and they all hurried away toward the castle. Sai went back to bowing his head in concentration, having to keep his focus in order to keep his scouts moving.

While he was busy trying to locate Naraku, everyone else had a bit of time on their hands. The group of ninja talked amongst themselves, leaving Sango out of it. Though she wanted to be a part of their group she didn't mind being left out for the time being; she had her own things to think about.

She still didn't know all that much about her teammates, and to be honest they kind of frightened her at times. At best right then she was feeling sketchy about them; they seemed to know more than her and worked well together. But that didn't matter. They were helping her, and she was grateful of that.

She didn't have all that much time to go deep into thought on the matter, though, because Sai soon raised his head. There was a confused look plastered on his face as he summoned them all.

"I found him," he said slowly, as he exploded his mice into regular old ink so they couldn't be traced back to him, "All three of him."

"THREE?" Naruto gaped, "How can there be three of him?"

It's not that hard, idiot! You make shadow clones all the time, and way more than three! It's not unlikely that others know how to do it too," Sakura fumed, her partner's idiocy getting on her nerves. He never bothered to use any logic before opening his big mouth.

"Oh yeah…" the boy said slowly, smiling awkwardly. He'd heard the tone of her voice clear as day and was just happy that she hadn't smoked him in the face like she normally would have done.

"Hmm… three targets, one group. We'll just have to check them all individually to figure out which is the real Naraku. It may take a bit of time, but we'll be sure to destroy the right one that way. Sai, do you still have the locations?" Kakashi planned, voicing the best possible action to take.

Sai laughed, "Of course! I'm not a dumbass like Naruto, I actually think ahead once in a while."

Naruto grumbled something of an insult toward the guy, though it was indecipherable. Sai ignored him, almost as if he wasn't even there. He proceeded to make just a few mice to accompany them, in case he made a mistake in tracking the enemy.

Sango said, "Then if we're all ready, we might as well get going. The longer we stay here doing nothing the harder it'll be for Miroku and Kaede to contain Inuyasha…"

They agreed and set off for the castle. They went slowly, making sure they didn't rush into things and accidentally walk right into some sort of trap. That was one thing they could definitely do without right now.

Nothing distracted them from their mission on the way to the looming grey structure; they thankfully didn't run into the enemy or any of his henchmen, something that made their job that much easier.

Soon they were standing at the base of the castle, nervously looking around. The place gave off a dark sort of feeling, one of impending doom. They all tried their best to ignore this strange sensation, but with most of them it stayed.

"Well, what're we waiting for?" Naruto said brightly as he could, trying to bring some livelihood back into the group, "Why don't we get going? This guy's not going to just wait in one place until we find him!"

Though the others agreed, Sango wasn't quite sure what to think. Knowing Naraku, he would do exactly that: wait for them to find him. He was up to something and she knew it, but for some reason she kept this to herself.

"Kay," she nodded in fake agreement, as she walked toward the majestic double doors that would allow them access into the fortress. She managed to pull them open, which amazingly wasn't hard at all. They came apart as easily as anything, only adding to Sango's suspicion.

Once they were wide open she stepped back, allowing for someone to take over. She'd do them no good if she led them from here on out; unknowing of where anything was in this strange place, she'd probably end up doing them more bad than good.

Sai, a slightly arrogant look on his face, pushed her aside. He was the only one who knew where this guy's locations were, so he'd be the one to lead. Casually he strode into the castle as if nothing was wrong.

"So, Sai, which way to we go to find the first one?" Sakura asked from the back of the group. It seemed like the man they were after had caused a great deal of pain, and she wanted to give him a piece of her mind.

Sai began to walk forward, the others following after him. He didn't say anything and instead just walked, making sure he was going the right way.

As they all followed blindly after the pasty boy they all kept an eye out for traps and ambushes and other things of the sort.

Much to Sango's surprise, the castle seemed perfectly normal. Aside from the evil aura that filled the place, it looked just like a regular old castle; the walls were of a dull grey brick and the ceiling high. Torches lined the mazelike halls, shedding light for whomever may need it, and other than the odd group who was wandering the halls, the place seemed relatively deserted.

"Hey, hey! What's that up there?" Naruto shouted suddenly, pointing up ahead. There was a dark human-like shape just standing there in the middle of the hall. It was as if it wanted them to know something.

It turned around and began to walk away for them, slowly for some reason, as if it wanted them to follow it.

Sango was the first to come to a realization. She said, gasping slightly as she did so, "That's him! That's Naraku, I'm sure of it. We have to catch him… Sai, where was the first one? That's most likely where he's heading."

Sai nodded, jolting forward in pursuit. As they all began to run the figure sped up, disappearing behind a nearby corner. They lost sight of him but that didn't matter; if Sango's prediction was correct, they knew exactly where they'd find him.

Soon, after running around a few corners, Sai confirmed that he'd returned to his previous position, the one that his mice had found. They came upon a door, which was only slightly ajar. Sango pushed through others, wanting to get a good look at what was inside.

Making sure to not accidentally give them away she peeked inside. There stood Naraku, that grin on his face that never failed to make her uneasy. He seemed to be all alone, but she couldn't tell for sure; she could only see a small sliver of the room, and there was no telling what else could be in there.

"That's definitely him, no doubt about it," she whispered to the others, "We should probably make a plan or something. We'll have to be careful of this… Naraku's sly, and you never know what he'll do next."

They all began to discus what plan of action they would take, their conversation in whispers so the enemy wouldn't overhear. They'd thought up a few good ones when they were randomly interrupted by something.

"Well, well, well. Sango, I see you've come after me. Maybe to save Inuyasha by taking back Kagome? Or perhaps to avenge his inevitable death?" came a voice from inside the room. It was ominous, sending chills up and down their spines.

That was it, he knew. Of course he probably knew the whole time that they were there and was only now letting them on about it, but that wasn't the point. He knew that they were there and ready to fight, and that alone would make this just that much harder for them.

"Naraku… what d'you want?" Sango asked nervously, not yet opening the door. Though she'd been hunting him down since she'd met Inuyasha and hated his guts more than anything in the world, she couldn't deny that he instilled an intense fear in her.

"Oh, I've already got what I want. Her eyes are spectacular at finding shards, and soon my jewel will be complete. It seems that you can't rest easy while she's in my possession, though… too bad for you," he laughed.

A growl formed in Naruto's throat; just this guy's voice filled him with hatred, let alone how he was toying with Sango. He wouldn't stand for it. Naraku wouldn't get away with whatever it was he'd done, the boy would make sure of it.

"What d'you think you're doing, hurting everyone like this?" he yelled, bursting very forcefully into the room. The door flew open as he powered into it, nearly coming loose from its hinges.

The boy charged at the looming figure of Naraku, not taking notice of anything cut the dastardly fiend. His powerful punch was just about to make contact when he was blown out of the way by a couple of small tornados.

With a soft thump he crashed into the wall to the side of Naraku, the lady that had attacked him standing calmly at the side of the room opposite him.

:end of chapter 18:

YES! This chapter is done! ...obviously... woo!

Anyway, yeah. Things are going good. I'm ahead in nearly all my classes, and most of them are turning out to be really fun. As for my stories... I dunno. I seem to be in a bit of a slump. I don't know what's caused it or anything, but I just don't seem to be motivated to write lately. I hate it so much because I really want to write, but I just... bleh. Hopefully it'll go away soon and I can get back to writing like I normally do.

But in the meantime, I DO have a few chapters ready to type up. I'm almost done drafting this story, only a few chapters to go. You'll never guess what happens next! Or what happens after that, or after that! I also have been drawing quite a bit, so I have some character profiles over on deviantART.

Anyway, I'll keep with the deadline no matter how I feel about writing, so the next chapter should be up in two weeks. Yay for you!


	19. A Foe Appears

Chapter 19

"Naruto!" Sakura called out, running to the yellow-haired boy. She kneeled beside him, inspecting him for any injuries, a worried look on his face. He'd taken quite a hard hit, that was for sure.

Not caring that Sakura was tending to him and completely obsessed with his anger toward the half-demon, he pushed her out of the way and got up, wiping the tiniest bit of blood from his lip. That girl that had attacked him wouldn't get in his way; he'd defeat her and then kill Naraku himself.

"Naruto…" Sakura muttered, sinking back. She knew that look in his eyes, the one that said he'd go to the ends of the earth to accomplish the goal at hand. It was the same look that used to sparkle in his eyes when he'd talked of rescuing Sasuke.

Storming across the room a dangerous sounding growl formed on his lips, "Why you… you'll never get away with this. I may not have been able to save Sasuke, but I won't allow the same thing to happen to the people of this world."

He was halfway to his target when something stopped him. It wasn't the looming form of Naraku, which had been standing completely still since first beconing them in; no, the one who stopped him was one of his allies, and for good reason.

Her hand held out in front of him to stop him from going any farther Temari told him, "Naruto, if I were you, I wouldn't do that. She's a wind user by the looks of that last attack. I'd much rather take her on, teach her a lesson or two about the proper controlling of wind."

"You sure? She seems weak, I could easily defeat her," Naruto growled, starting to calm down a bit. He knew that if he lost his head so easily he could put his friends in danger, and possibly ruin their chances of success on this mission.

"Yeah, I'm sure. We'll need you later on, and if worse comes to worse, I'm expendable. It's better if you all go on to check out the other guys, because it looks like this one was a decoy to distract us. The girl who attacked you is probably only here to stall us for time," she explained calmly, pushing the boy toward the door.

"Expendable… wait, you're not going to sacrifice yourself, are you?" Naruto burst, his eyes wide. He wanted to accomplish his mission, but not at the expense of his own friends.

"If it comes to that," she started, continuing to shove him toward the door, "I'll sacrifice myself so that you'll be able to succeed. But I don't think that'll happen… I usually don't like making predictions like this, but she doesn't look all that strong."

"But…" he protested, though it was no use. By the time he found it in him to fight back and keep her from doing this he was already out in the hall with the others. Before he could do anything she slammed the door in his face.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but I have to do this. They need you," she whispered to the door, sure that he couldn't hear her. She didn't like that she'd had to do that, but it really was for the best.

She took a moment to regain her composure before looking back to her opponent. She didn't look strong, but at that point an underestimation like that could turn out to be very deadly.

"That was very noble of you. Not the smartest thing to do, but definitely noble," Kagura said from across the room, a bittersweet smile on her face, "Are you ready to face what you've gotten yourself into?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," the ninja replied confidently, getting ready to whip out her weapon of choice. She didn't know what would happen in this fight, and would have to stay on guard at all times.

As she took out her fan she saw her opponent's smile fade for a slight moment; she hadn't expected that in the least. From across the room she heard her mutter, "That's… that's one big fan…"

Soon the wind demon returned to normal, though, ready to get the fight started. Before they could do so, however, her master and creator moved, catching the attention of both of them. Silently he moved toward Temari, a wicked grin on his face. He didn't do anything other than that; just before he reached her he disappeared into thin air, leaving the two of them alone in the room.

"OK, here I come," Temari announced after shaking off the creepy feeling Naraku had instilled in her. She'd gotten at least one thing out of his actions; the Naraku in this room HAD been a decoy, so at least her companions weren't wasting their valuble time here.

A determined look on her face she charged at her opponent, her fan held steadily at her side. She would go full force right from the start, taking no chances.

Wanting to assess her opponent's skills before launching a proper attack, she faked the charge, just to gain some information. When she did attack she wanted to have a plan ready. Her friends still might need her, and she had to do this carefully if she wanted to meet up with them again.

"Damn… an eager one…" Kagura said softly, sidestepping to avoid the girl's charge, watching her run past. She wasn't in the best of moods and quite honestly didn't want to be there right then.

She knew that Inuyasha had gone full demon; when the battle had taken place she'd been hiding in the bushes, watching the entire thing. Now that Inuyasha was almost certainly out of commission she figured she'd have no hope whatsoever of being freed from Naraku's clutches.

Her anger at this notion getting to her, she whipped around. With the flick of her wrist she extended her fan, a challenge to her opponent. She was confident in her abilities and despite the size of Temari's fan, she couldn't allow the ninja to defeat her.

Temari nodded, a determined smile spreading across her face. She could tell that at the very least this was going to be an interesting show of power and control. The challenge accepted, the two prepared to fight.

Having at least some idea of her opponent's fighting style, Temari decided to start off easy to see just what she could do. She's still give it her all, but at the same time she'd keep smart. With that in mind she charged at her opponent, her giant fan at the ready.

Thinking fast Kagura waved her hand and shouted her a counterattack that would stop Temari in her tracks, "Dance of the Dragon!"

Three mini-tornados emerged from her fan, fierce gusts of wind that had the ability to tear a person limb from limb effortlessly if conducted the right way. Kagura, her aim precise, controlled them so they powered directly toward Temari, destroying everything in their path.

Temari was unable to avoid the massive whirlwinds, getting swept up into their depths. Kagura smiled, sure that she'd effectively taken care of the situation. She was a pretty ordinary-looking girl, after all, and normally that alone would be enough to ensure her victory.

Just in case, however, she continued to keep the tornados active for a few moments longer. She figured it was overkill, but if her master wasn't satisfied with her performance there would most likely be severe consequences.

When she thought the time was right she dispelled the attack and the room slowly cleared up. In their rampage the tornados had caused quite a bit of destruction.

Papers were strewn everywhere, the desk they had once been contained in torn to pieces and scattered across the floor. They'd even destroyed one of the walls, opening up a view of the outside. A cot lay in shambles against another wall.

The only thing she didn't see was her opponent. Unsure of whether she'd escaped through the crumbling wall or if she'd been defeated, Kagura thought to check outside just to be certain.

The setting sun casting an eery glow across the landscape, she searched briefly for Temari, to no prevail. Soon she was sure that she'd come out victorious and she headed back inside to relax a little.

As she casually strode back into the confines of her master's brick fortress something whizzed past her head. She heard it whip through the air before she saw it, a throwing star that glimmered in the darkening light.

"You won't get rid of me so easily. You can't hurt me all that much with wind; I too am someone who uses it to my advantage," Temari called down to her from up in the sky, a bit of a grin on her face.

In the craziness of kagura's attack she'd had to act fast. She'd expanded her fan and had rode the tornados while manipulating the air around her so she wouldn't be injured. Secretly she'd been relieved when they'd passed through the wall; although she'd been pelted with a fair bit of debris, it had given her the chance to really fight.

"Don't worry, I'm just getting started," Kagura growled, taking a feather out of the bun at the back of her head. With the flick of her wrist the feather grew, allowing her to fly up into the air.

The two hovered there in the skies for a moment or two, staring each other down and trying to predict what would happen next. The silence seemed to last an eternity, crickets chirping obnoxiously in the background.

Suddenly Temari stood up, pulling her fan out from under her feet. Immediately she plummeted toward the earth, the determined look on her face as solid as ever. She had a plan and was definitely confident about it.

Acting fast she called out, "Cutting whirlwind technique!"

Caught offguard by this peculiar attack, Kagura fell backward through the air, tumbling. Before she knew it Temari was again up in the air, looming over her after using the attack a few times more to boost her up.

She retracted her fan, raising it above her head. As with before she began to fall to the ground, but now with one key difference: kagura was under her, still slightly disoriented. Now she had the advantage she wanted.

With a bit of a determined roar she powered the into Kagura's gut, feet first. The wind was knocked out of the demon from the force, her face scrunching up slightly in pain. Wanting to avoid getting run into the ground that was fast approaching she maneuvered her feather out from under the ninja.

It was just the evasive maneuver Temari had been counting on, and instead of getting the girl out of harm's way it worked to the ninja's advantage. A visiously determined smile on her face and a glimmer in her eyes she brought the fan down on her opponent.

With a sickening crack the fan made contact, Kagura's chest caving in slightly. Without a doubt she'd have at least a few broken bones when this was all said and done, though it was likely the damage would be much greater than that.

The two fell to the earth, Kagura ahead of Temari. The girl was nearly unconscious, at Temari's mercy. Not wanting to be injured by the fall Temari created a small gust of wind to cusion her landing. For Kagura, who was below Temari, it only made her impact more disastrous.

Floating softly and silently to the ground on her fan Temari sighed with relief. There was no way someone could survive those blows doubled with the tremendous fall.

But luckily for Kagura, she wasn't human. She was one of Naraku's many spawn, a demon through and through, and as such couldn't be killed so easily. But still she was in a great deal of pain, excruciating pain, and would need a bit of time to recover before completely confronting her again.

She smiled, a dribble of blood spilling from her mouth. She knew the perfect way to buy some time, weaken, and possibly even kill her opponent. A raspy laugh escaped her throat; she still had hope to win this battle and rid this world of Naraku on her own.

She could no longer rely on Inuyasha to erase Naraku's existence and just the thought of being under that monster's control filled her with a rage unlike any other, a rage that gave her a kind of new strength.

With that rage all too evident in her voice she yelled with her fan ever so slightly waving through the air, "Dance of the Dead!"

:end of chapter 19:

So yeah, there you have it! The action finally starts up again, WOO! This battle has a seriously unexpected end, and the others to come as well. You'll never guess what happens next, I swear it! But that aside, yeah. There's some serious awesomeness coming your way in the next couple chapters. There are still a few plot twists and stuff to keep you guys guessing.

I'm on chapter 30 now (in rough draft, though) and I'm thinking of making a mini side-story for something that's to come in the story. I won't say anything more about the side story becaue it'll give away a part of this, but I'm planning for it to be a comedy type of one. Hopefully it won't fall through... I really want to do it.

Next update... hmm... I'm not quite sure when it'll come out. I have my sixteenth birthday in two days and my party on the weekend of the twenty-first, so I'll be pretty busy organizing. I'm not sure if I'll be able to get it out in the two weeks, so it might be bumped up to three weeks. Sorry, but it might have to be done.

Anyway... you can expect the next update to be either on the twenty-third or the thirtieth.


	20. Hope and Mistakes

Chapter 20

They could hear the voices inside talking of things, thought they couldn't quite make out what was being said. Naruto pounded his fists against the door in frustration, wanting only to get back in and help his comrade.

Sakura, who had gotten what Temari had been implying and slipped out of the room before he'd been forced out, put her hand on his shoulder. Tightening her grim so he pulled away from the door she told him calmly, "She's made her decision, Naruto. There's nothing we can do but move forward and try to find the real one."

"Right," Gaara said harshly, speaking for the first time in a while, "Let's get going, then. We might be able to get back here in time to help her if we finish up quickly."

They all nodded, Naruto pulling himself together. They had a mission to accomplish and if they were to dawdle around here they wouldn't be able to do that.

When they were just about to set off again Kakashi thought of something. Turning to the red-haired boy he asked, "Gaara, you said that you under this man's control when you came to this world alone, correct?"

Gaara nodded, having a slight idea of what he might be getting at. Indeed, he had bent to this man's will to obtain shelter and food and companionship.

"Is this where he took you to stay? While he was planning how to use you, is this the hideout he brought you to?" Kakashi continued, making the questions so he'd know for sure and there wouldn't be any mix-ups.

Again he nodded, fully understanding what was needed of him. He told the others, "Yeah, this is definitely the castle I was in. I was allowed to roam around a little inside these walls, all but a few rooms. If you'd like, I could help lead."

"That's exactly what I was implying!" Kakashi smiled. He turned to Sai, "Please tell him where they are, and while you're at it make a few more scout to stick with us, just in case."

He had a bad feeling about this and wanted to remain on the safe side, just in case anything should happen to split them up.

Sai kindly obliged, drawing a few snakes and gave them the ability to move before telling Gaara of the Narakus' positions. Soon they were ready to co, Gaara joining Sai at the head of the pack.

"The nearest one to us is just down the way, probably not too far away," Gaara announced, as he and Sai started to move forward. He knew where they were going better than anyone else there, which would turn out to give them all an advantage.

Obediently the gang followed, on guard like never before. After what had just happened with Temari, they didn't want to have any more instances like that. It took them longer to traverse through the massive place in order to confront the enemy than it usually would, but it was well worth it.

All the halls seemed to look the same, creating one giant maze-like structure. Amazingly, they found it easy to make their way through the many halls.

They hadn't been walking for all that long when they heard a giant crashing sound coming from the way they'd just come from. Worriedly they looked behind them briefly, thinking the worst.

They knew that a noise such as the one they'd heard could only mean one thing: Temari's fight was going full force, and one of them had just been forced to step it up a notch. What worried them was that they didn't know if she was all right or not.

They tried not to contemplate what the fate of their friend might be, knowing it would only make them more likely to mess up themselves. It hut them to have to be in that mindset, but it was for the best.

"Are we nearly there?" Naruto asked loudly, trying to put Temari out of his mind for the most part. He had to focus on the task ahead, and couldn't have those kinds of thoughts distracting him.

Sai shook his head, "No, not yet. It seems my calculations are a little off… but don't worry. I'm getting us back on track as we speak. And Naruto, don't do suck a dickless thing as you did last time. Charging blindly into battle brings all of us down, and Temari's separated from us because of you."

Naruto hung his head, not sure how to react to that statement. In a way it was true and he knew that, which only made him feel worse. Managing to contain himself he merely moved on, his mouth staying firmly shut.

They continued on as if nothing had happened, an odd tension in the air. Just as they had been doing before they walked along the endless halls, gradually getting closer to their target.

Along the way Sango spied a figure in the shadows in one of the branching halls. She wasn't sure, but it looked like her little brother, Kohaku. None of the others seemed to notice him standing there, though, so she tried to put it to the back of her mind.

Her thoughts didn't stay in cheek for long, though. Soon after she saw him again in the shadows of another hall, and again after that. Finally her curiosity got the best of her and she decided that she had to know for sure.

Inconspicuously making her way to the back of the group she determined when she'd leave. She planned to do it in silence, so as not to alert the others of her absence. She'd only be gone a few moments, and she didn't want to worry her companions.

The next hall came up fast, and just like before the boy stood in the darkness. As quiet as she could she slipped away, the rest of them unknowingly going on without her.

There, just as she so desperately hoped, was Kohaku. He just stood there before her, still immersed in the shadows, a blank look on his face. Sango didn't make much of a move before she was sure the others were out of earshot, not wanting to worry them.

Once that came to be she stepped forward, a pained look on her face. She hated to see her kid brother like this, brainwashed by the one she loathed the most. She'd save him from his fate with Naraku if it were the last thing she did, she'd make sure of it.

"K-Kohaku? Kohaku, it's me, Sango," she said, reaching out her hand. So many emotions were running through her, she didn't quite know what to do. All she could do was try to get through to him and go on from there.

Kirara looked up at her friend, a sad look in her eyes. She'd noticed her going away and had followed in hopes of keeping her out of trouble.

She cried out in protest, knowing that just like every time the two had met previously, this time would be no different and would end in some sort of betrayal. She didn't want to see her friend go through that heartbreak and anguish.

Of course, Sango didn't listen. She was still too caught up in her fantasies of Kohaku being free again to properly be her brother.

Soon the two were so close to the boy that they could reach out and touch him. Her hand shaking uncontrollably she did just that, though to no prevail. He silently took a step back, his first movement since Sango had discovered him.

"Sango… sister…" he said suddenly, taking the girl and her demon cat by surprise, "Not here. He's watching… always watching. But I know of a safe place. If you want you can follow me, and then we can talk."

Vigorously she nodded, completely missing the possibility that this could very well be a trap. Her curiosity and desire were getting the best of her and she didn't even realize it. She was just too absorbed in it.

Kohaku turned around on his heel, walking away from the girl. He recognized her but to be perfectly honest, he had absolutely no idea who she was. Naraku had just told him what to say and do, so he was just following his master's orders. He wouldn't let her know that, though.

Sango and Kirara followed blindly, Sango completely absorbed in her dream while Kirara was on edge. The demon cat had a bad feeling about this, but she followed alongside her companion nonetheless. Should the need arise, she'd have to help Sango out of this mess.

Down the dark hall they traveled, putting more and more distance between them and the rest of the gang. This was all part of Naraku's plan and as such, it needed to be executed flawlessly. The evil half-demon didn't need the others interfering.

"Kohaku, where are we going? Are we almost there?" Sango whispered, anxious to finally reunite with the brother she'd been fighting for so long to save. All she wanted was to hug him properly, as brother and sister.

He merely looked over his shoulder and nodded, making not a sound. They were indeed almost there, as they arrived soon after she asked.

They found themselves in a room, not too huge, but still pretty big. In it there wasn't a single piece of furniture, only bland barren walls of brick. It looked safe enough and it appeared that her brother had regained his lost memories, so Sango figured it was safe to trust him.

Kohaku leading the way, they followed him into the middle of the room. Before Kirara could even enter the room, however, the door slammed shut randomly. Still wishing for the best, it was only then that Sango began to get a little nervous.

"Kohaku, can't we let Kirara in? She's happy to see you released from Naraku too, you know," she told him, the odd silence in the room making her grow more and more nervous. As with before he'd become still, not responding.

She could feel the tears forming in her eyes. She wanted nothing more than to free him so they could live as a family again. Maybe Kirara had been right, maybe he was still being controlled, but her heard just couldn't take that.

"Kohaku… please…" she whimpered, inching closer to him. As she took him in a loving embrace her tears pooled on the ground, her sobs soft and her breathing shallow. She knew now that her friend HAD been right, and it pained her that she couldn't do anything to change that.

A few moments passed with the two like that, but it ended a lot sooner than Sango would have hoped. Soon her brother pulled away, a vicious shine in his eyes.

"Sango… it's time to finish what he started that day. Soon he'll have the jewel completed, thanks to that boy. But you're lucky; you won't be around to see that happen," he said softly, drawing his weapon.

Sango, filled with a mix of emotions once again, drew her own weapon, though she vowed not to attack. She couldn't bring herself to hurt her brother, enemy or not.

Over and over he threw his sickle at her fiercely, and every time she managed to block effectively. But it was no good; under Naraku's guidance he'd been training, and was nearly at her skill level. He really had grown.

Though she could see that with her will so weak and her brother so skilled that this was a losing battle, she refused to give up and run away. She'd stay with her brother until the very end.

Suddenly her boomerang was flying through the air, knocked out of her hands by a particularly powerful blow from Kohaku. She was no without weapon, backed into a corner.

"Please, Kohaku… you have to remember…" she cried, lurching forward into one last hug. If she was going do die here, she'd do it holding a loved one.

Her heart full of sadness, she felt her brother raise his weapon to deal the lethal blow. Whilst holding him tightly she saw out of the corner of her eyes something that startled her.

At the other end of the room stood a figure, dowsed in shadow. The only part of him she could see were his eyes, the likes of which she had never seen before.

:end of chapter 20:

So here be chapter 20. Sorry for not updating last week; I was still really busy with taking down the party stuff, and then converting the room we used into an office. Mostly we have to clean out my sister's crap (there's a freaking lot of it... we hardly made a dent in it even now), and then we have to sell some stuff (a few dressers and a scanner and some other stuff), and then we have to figure out how to arrange the room. After that, I might be moving my laptop in there for the most part; right now I have to sit at the top of the stairs to be on my computer... I want a view of outside. We have nice trees outside and they can be relaxing and stuff... good for the creativity. Or I might get rid of the dresser in my room that I can't even use, and get one of those nice corner desks. That would be nice too.

Anyway... you all probably don't care about that, so I'll shut up about it.

So... you're probably wondering what happened to Temari. You'll find out soon enough. Same with Sango... but I have a few things to do first. We'll get back to them in a little bit. I think it'll be worth the wait; you have no idea what I have in store for all of these peoples.

Oh yeah! Since it's now summer holidays (has been for a week, but I've been cleaning and the like) I'm hoping to get a lot more typing done. I nearly have the entire rough copy of this fanfiction done. Should I tell you how many chapters are left? I dunno... I don't want to ruin it. So I'll keep it a secret. But I will say that I'll have four or five little mini-chapters, Extras, to finish the story off. I realized that there were a few loose ends the way I wrote it, so they'll tie everything up quite nicely.

Well, I must be off. I'll have the next chapter to you in two weeks... maybe less, depending on how much typing I get done. But I'd hope for the two weeks, just in case.


	21. Battle for Two

Chapter 21

The group walked along the seemingly endless corridor, wondering when it would end. Still there were all on edge, ready to defend themselves at a moment's notice. One couldn't be too careful when dealing with Naraku; they'd learned that the hard way.

Out of nowhere they heard a soft mewing off in the distance, seeming to come from behind them. Most all of them took notice of it, though none thought much of it for the time being. Gradually it got louder, the creature coming closer.

Eventually Sakura gave into her curiosity, turning around to see what it was that was following them. It could be a threat to them, and she couldn't risk not knowing.

There, still a ways away but chasing the group through the winding halls, was the small demon cat. One thing in particular caught the medical ninja's attention; instead of being in her normal cute form, she was transformed into her more deadly form.

Kirara, desperate to save her companion, had transformed and tried to knock the door in. She'd tried her hardest, nearly knocking herself out over the course of the multiple impacts, but to no prevail; not only had the door been locked, but also Naraku had put a barrier there to keep everything but the two out.

Not wanting to abandon hope she'd come to find the others, sure that they'd help her since Sango was the only one even vaguely familiar with this world beside Gaara. They needed her, she was certain of it.

Upon seeing the frightened furry creature Sango stopped to get a better look. She said to the others, "Hey, it's Sango's pet… Kirara, if I remember correctly."

The others stopped to take a look, expressions of confusion on their faces. Naruto was the first to voice their collective question, "Kirara? What the heck's she doing way back there? Wasn't she just up here with us?"

"Yeah," Gaara added, "And speaking of which, where's Sango? She was just here too, but now she's gone…"

"Naraku must have gotten to her without us knowing, but for some reason let Kirara live," Kakashi hypothesised, "Probably to give us a message or something. He most likely wants us to go back and help her."

"But if we do that we'll be walking right into his trap. Not to mention the fact that we're nearly at the next one, and going back would set us behind quite a bit," Sai said calmly, looking over his shoulder at the rest of them.

Naruto could feel the anger flooding into him. His own comrade was suggesting they just keep going as if she hadn't gone missing, and that was something he just wouldn't stand for. Shaking his fist in Sai's face he growled, "And you think we should just leave her? How could you say something like that?"

With a sigh the boy said, "She knows how this Naraku guy works better than any of us. She knew that we were here to help. If she was stupid enough to walk head on into one of his traps and not even tell us about it, that's her problem. She doesn't deserve saving."

Naruto blinked, slightly taken aback. He'd known that Sai thought that was most of the time, but it was still a bit of a shock to hear him say it so casually. Though he hated to admit it, the guy had a point; she'd ignored common sense and was most likely paying for it as they spoke.

"Fine," Naruto pouted, crossing his arms. He wasn't happy about it, but her knew there was nothing he could do to change everyone's minds. Going back for her would only serve to putting everyone else in harm's way, which was definitely something they did NOT need to deal with at the moment.

"Mew… mew, mew!" Kirara pleaded, wearily changing back into her normal form. She was exhausted and couldn't quite maintain her stronger self. She didn't just want to abandon her long-time friend, leaving her behind.

Sakura leaned down to pick the demon cat up. As she rocked her back and forth in her arms and patted her on the head she said sympathetically, "I'm sorry, Kirara… we just can't go back for her. Sai put it a bit harsh"– she stopped to glare at him for a moment –"but he IS right."

Kirara sighed, her body slumping along with her spirits. She'd tried to tell Sango that it wasn't a good idea to follow so blindly but she hadn't listened, and now there would be no going back for her.

Retiring herself to her mind to think things over, Kirara moodily make her way to Sakura's shoulder. She would rest there for the rest of the journey.

Sakura nodded slightly, allowing the cat demon to take refuge there. She knew it must be hard for her and didn't want to make it any worse. Once that was settled she turned back to the group, ready to head off again.

"OK, let's get going," Kakashi said, turning to Sai, "As you said, we're nearly there. Lead the way, Sai."

"Yeah, just a little further," Sai confirmed, giving a fake smile. He'd been trained to have no emotions but even despite that, he had a bad feeling about this. It seemed that he was the only one who felt this way, though, so he kept it to himself.

The group walked on down the halls, now one member short. They didn't have far to go; as Sai confirmed, they soon came across another suspicious-looking door. There he halted, indicating that this was the place.

"OK, so everyone be cautious. Naruto, keep control of your emotions… we don't need another mess-up like what happened the last time," Kakashi told them all, looking particularly at the young yellow-haired man.

Naruto nodded slightly, the message understood.

With that the grey-haired ninja slowly opened the door, peeking in. As was with the last time the fiend stood in the middle of the room, completely still. It was obvious that he knew they were there; the look in his eyes was beckoning them in.

They reluctantly took him up on his silent offer, stepping inside one by one. They found, standing behind him, a little girl with long white hair. She seemed timid, holding a small mirror protectively in her hands.

She inched out from behind the evil man, an emotionless expression on her face. She looked up at him and asked softly, "Master… they're here. How would you prefer I deal with them, Master?"

He leaned over, whispering his instructions into her ear. She was his most trusted servant, being his very first spawn, and he would allow her to take care of one of the ones they knew very little about.

When he straightened she nodded, stepping forward. She knew her instructions and would follow them flawlessly, to make her master proud.

Naraku, his job as one of the real Naraku's golems complete, turned into hundreds of pebbles and crumbled to the ground, leaving Kanna and the ninjas alone in the room. The golem would only get in the way.

Kanna shifted her balance to hold the delicate mirror in one hand, pointing g to the head of the group. Picking her opponent she called softly, "You, the black-haired one… you'll fight me. Everyone else, leave if you value your lives."

Sai stepped forward, ready to fight. He felt confident, sure that this was a match he would easily win.

Naruto reached out, holding the guy in place by his shoulder. He said fiercely, "Sai, you sure about this? We need you to lead us to the real one, not waste time here."

"Naruto, quit your bellyaching, will you?" Sai replied meanly, his fake smile flickering just the slightest bit, "You and I both know I can win. She's merely a little girl, probably doesn't even have any special skills. She doesn't stand a chance."

Naruto looked again at his companion's opponent. He had to admit, Sai had a point; as it was she looked weak and defenceless, an easy target.

"Just go already!" Sai commanded, pushing him back to the others, "I can deal with her just fine on my own. And Gaara knows where the final one is, so he can take my place as leader. My scouts will also be with you to help, so there's really nothing at all to worry about."

"Fine, but Sai… don't you dare lose!" Naruto growled, stepping back willingly. He wasn't going to start unnecessary fights when there were much more important things to be dealt with.

The odd young man nodded, smiling. With that he saw them out the door, closing it once they were gone, separating him from the rest of his team. He knew that being able to watch him fight would only distract them, something he didn't want to happen.

He turned back to his opponent, a determined look in his eyes. Fast as he could he would defeat her so he could again meet up with his teammates to face the one they were really after.

"Are you ready?" Kanna asked, wanting to start off on fair terms.

"Ready to defeat you? Any day!" he answered harshly, though at the same time staying calm.

He whipped a scroll and writing utensils out from his backpack, a gleam in his eye. He'd overwhelm her right off the bat, leaving her no opportunity to fight back. Quickly he scribbled dozens of critters and brought them to life to do his bidding. Very soon he had his own little army of troops, all ready to attack at a moment's notice.

"Interesting," Kanna commented uncaringly, the blank expression remaining on her face. She seemed unfazed by the mass of attackers, almost not noticing them.

Sai laughed, "Oh, you're good. Most people by now would be terrified, yet you've kept a straight face. You're sensei must be very skilled."

"No, Master Naraku taught me nothing. I merely serve him. I am nothingness, have no emotion," she corrected, staring at him blankly.

"Nothing, eh? Then it shouldn't cause me any trouble to rid this world of you," he told her confidently, getting into a battle stance. He had his ink creatures to do his bidding, but he wanted to be ready for close quarters combat should the need arise.

Suddenly he put two of his animals, a snake and a rat, on the attack, as a trial run. Before she could do anything he wanted to render her immobile, as well as test her skill; he didn't want to sacrifice his entire army for nothing. It would serve him two causes, something that was always welcomed.

Slithering steadily forward, the snake got itself behind the girl while the mouse tried to distract her. She seemed uninterested in both the attack and the attacker, allowing the snake to sneak up behind her. She had a plan, and this man didn't worry her in the least. How could he? She had no emotions to worry with.

The snake moved to strike, coiling around her body to bind her in place. She didn't flinch, making not a movement. She willingly let it wind around her, becoming slightly stiffer. The only thing she insisted on doing was keep hold of the mirror, which she made sure of by moving into a better position.

"I have you now… you can't escape, you know. And now that you can't move, I'm going to need you to answer a few questions. Think you can do that?" Sai asked her threateningly, a mischievous look on his face.

He planned to get some needed information about their target before destroying her. That way when he was to meet up with his partners-in-crime, he could give them a little insight into what they were really dealing with.

She stayed silent, barely acknowledging the fact that he'd cornered her. She would be hard to break, this one, but he didn't see that as a problem; as his bingo book confirmed on many occasions, he'd taken out much more dangerous enemies.

His usual fake smile plastered on his face he called out a group of his ink creatures to attack. As they charged at their target he said calmly, "Then I guess I'll just have to… persuade you to tell me all your 'master's' secret, then."

:end of chapter 21:

Woo, a double feature this week! It's kind of to make up for last week and stuff. I'll still be updating in two weeks. Maybe sooner, even. I've been typing a lot lately (it's summer break so I have lots of free time in between work and stuff)... wrote these last two chapters in two days. And I played lots of TF2 and internet games... and more writing, and drawing too.

Anyway, I'm going to stop myself there. I was about to start rambling on about nothing again. About this chapter... yeah. I dunno if Sai was OOC or not; I tried my best and I think I got him at least half-way decent, but I'm not completely sure. I'll leave that for you all to decide.

You'll like the upcoming chapters. There's still a few twists. The fight pairings were fun to make. Don't worry; you'll know what happened to everyone soon enough. In the next few chapters for sure. So just hang in there. It won't be too long, especially at the rate I'm typing lately.

Oh yes, and if any of you are interested in my original works (yeah, I have original works... betchya didn't know that, did ya?) I have a few new ones that I'll be putting onto my account and account. I'm working on an 'Immortal Handbook' and a short little 'immortal diary entry' and a few zombie fics.

I actually have one or two more chapters typed up other than this one, but I'm going to save those for a later date. You know, just in case I randomly get really busy in the next week or so. It's summer and that's been known to happen to me during this time. So yeah. Just thought I'd let you all know.

Well I must be off (it's midnight as I type this and I have to work tomorrow), so I have to get me some shut eye. Next chapter should be out in two weeks or less.


	22. Tricks up the Sleeve

Chapter 22

The ground began to shake slightly, something going on under the surface of the earth. Temari stepped back, unknowing of what was going on. The ground had started to thrash on her opponent's command, unleashing something inhuman.

Suddenly a fist popped out of the earth, followed by another, and dozens more after that. Her deathly technique was working, bringing her an army of near-invincible allies.

"What's going on?" Temari asked her loudly, confusion clear in her voice. She had some idea of what was happening, but refused to believe it. Never before had she witnessed something like this; she had thought it impossible.

Kagura didn't tell her, merely laughing to herself. This would be it, her winning move. When she'd seen that her opponent had powers she hadn't known of she'd deliberately chosen to get her over to this area; the part of taking on massive damage, however, wasn't a part of her plan.

It was the grave pit, where they dumped all the bodies of Kohaku's defeated 'trainers'. They'd begun to crowd the castle, their bodies piling up and the stench becoming quite unbearable, and it had been her job to move them elsewhere.

"Answer me, or you will not see any mercy from me," Temari threatened fiercely, though she still received no answer.

The hands continued to rise from the earth, pulling up the bodies they were attached to with them. Soon a hundred or more decomposing bodies stood in front of the one who'd summoned them.

"You… impossible…" Temari gaped, still unable to believe it. She'd never seen a dead person come back to life in any way, yet the person before her had raised the dead right in front of her eyes. It utterly baffled her, "You have… dead minions…"

"On the contrary, they're truly 'alive' in some sense of the word… or rather, their bodies are under my complete control. As one might say… zombies," Kagura explained with a throaty laugh, seeing the fear in her opponent's eyes.

Temari gulped, trying to regain her cool. She said nervously as she prepared herself for another battle, "Fine… I don't know how you managed to do that, but don't get cocky. I'll defeat you even if I have to go through them first."

Saying that, she gained a bit of her confidence back. She could tell that those were merely corpses, their minds and souls gone. They could not feel, nor would it matter if she completely destroyed them; these new enemies were walking bags of flesh, nothing more.

Kagura merely laughed, sure that she would be the victor. Without any warning she launched an attack, making sure to keep some of her minions behind to protect her should the need arise.

The army of death marched on blindly, advancing toward the target Kagura had chosen for them. They moves slowly, their decomposition having eaten away at their muscles and joints, but they continued nonetheless.

Temari knew that even though they weren't all that strong, the undead mob could very well defeat her if they all got to her at once. Their combined weight, along with the fact that they'd blindly try to clobber her, could only mean trouble.

Defensively she swung her fan, planning to knock them back while she thought up a better plan. At first she thought it worked, the many bodies flying backwards, but she was soon thinking twice about that.

Soon after landing hard on the ground near Kagura they mindlessly got to their feet, again shuffling toward their target. It seemed that she had complete control over them, just as she had said. To test out just what they could do without thinking for themselves, Temari decided to go on the offensive.

Kagura saw the look in her eyes, and thought the girl would do her work for her. She wanted to crush the girl's spirit, leaving her beaten in every possible way. She had to show her that there was no hope left for her in this fight.

"Dance of the dragon!" she cried, aiming her attack at her own minions. When she was sure the right amount of damage had been done she dispelled the tornados, showing her opponent what she could do.

Scattered across the ground were the corpses, many torn limb from limb. Not knowing any better Temari smiled, sure that Kagura had just completed her mission for her. That victorious smirk was quickly wiped off her face, though, and replaced with one of intense worry.

The zombies started to move, despite the fact that their arms and legs were no longer attached to their torsos, making their way toward her. As they went their limbs also came back to life, trying to find their hosts.

Soon the army was reassembled, their limbs somehow reattached. Kagura laughed; she once again had Temari right where she wanted her.

"Damn…" Temari muttered, trying to assess the situation calmly. By the looks of it, not even tearing them to pieces would get rid of them. She'd have to destroy them completely if she wanted to win.

The only problem: she wasn't sure if she had an attack that insanely strong.

She was beginning to freak out when she came to a realization. She did have one REALLY powerful attack, one that she'd only ever used once or twice when she was in a pickle. It would be a desperate last-ditch attempt, but she had to do it if she wanted to live.

Making the right hand signs as fast as she could she rammed her palm into the ground. The earth around her started to shake slightly, a cloud of smoke engulfing the ninja. When the smoke cleared there she stood, her secret weapon beside her.

"OK, Katamari… you're the only one here who can defeat this person and her undead army. You up for it?" she asked, looking at her summoned creature hopefully.

The one-eyed sickle weasel nodded, a determined sparkle in its eyes. He knew that she only called on him in the direst of times, and that when he was rarely summoned, he was expected to give it his all.

Suddenly massive winds flared up, engulfing the entire area. Before the dirt on the ground rose up in the whirlwind and clouded her vision she saw the many bodies get plucked from the earth one by one.

Soon she covered her own eyes, the dusty winds getting too ferocious. It took all her strength not to be lifted off the ground like everything else and tossed around in mercilessly in the winds, but she somehow managed to stay planted where she was.

Katamari eventually ceased his attack, though only when he was sure his opponent had successfully been defeated. When the fierce winds were completely gone he looked up at Temari for her confirmation.

"Thanks a lot… I think we got 'em all," Temari gasped, as he creature disappeared in another puff of smoke.

Exhausted from trying to keep herself from being blown away Temari collapsed. Looking around she found that Katamari had indeed done the job nearly flawlessly.

Looking around she saw bodies, torn to pieces. The boy parts were barely recognizable, merely sacks of mashed flesh and shattered bone. Here and there she would spot an intact finger or toe, but they posed no threat to her.

Kagura was nowhere to be seen, having roughly navigated the winds to get away. She cared not for the minions she'd raised from the dead, fleeing while they were slowly decimated.

"Heh…" Temari laughed, looking up to the sky and slowly slipping into unconsciousness, "Now that was an evenly matched fight…"

:change of focus:

Sango jumped back, pressing herself against the wall, surprised to see that they weren't alone in the room. Kohaku seemed not to notice, continuing to look at her threateningly. He wanted to strike at the ideal moment, when her fear of him was at its highest.

He soon found that that time had come, and readied his razor sharp sickle. He was about to attack, ending his sister's life. However, he never got the chance to do that.

The mysterious red-eyed figure moved from his place in the shadowy corner, directly behind Kohaku in the blink of an eye. Kohaku felt his presence right then, though he wasn't able to react in time.

Before either of them knew what was going on the figure placed a hand on Kohaku's shoulder, whipping him around. Swiftly he struck Kohaku, his hand digging into the boy's flesh. Soon his blood covered hand emerged from his neck, something clenched in it.

Caring not for the boy he'd attacked, the mysterious figure shoved his limp body to the ground. Kohaku landed with a soft thud, completely motionless.

"Amazing… such raw power…" the young man muttered, examining the small purple jewel he'd taken from the kid's body. He seemed to not even notice Sango shaking in the corner, or at least not until she realized what had happened.

Sango knelt next to Kohaku's lifeless body, barely believing her eyes. She'd known that this would happen eventually, but for her little brother's life to be ripped away from him so suddenly and mercilessly by a complete stranger was something she couldn't quite deal with.

"K-Kohaku… no, Kohaku! You can't be dead, you just can't!" she sobbed, weakly shaking his corpse. This couldn't be real, there was no way.

The figure looked down at her, his long black bangs giving him a look of pure hate. He said to her harshly, "Stop you're whining, whelp. He was about to kill you, so be grateful. I could just as easily send you with him."

"How am I supposed to stop crying over my brother's death?" Sango burst, her voice nearly at the screeching level, "You just killed my brother! And for what? One of those stupid jewel shards, which you probably know nothing about! I'm not going to calm down or stop crying just for you; you killed my brother, who I've been trying to save! I'd rather you let me join him."

The man fell silent momentarily, an odd silence filling the room. Something she'd said had intrigued him and the more he thought about it, the more he realized he ought to dig deeper into the mysterious shard with so much power.

"Get up, we're leaving. I've decided to spare you're life," he told her, turning for the door.

"Leaving? No, I'm staying here with Kohaku. Why would I EVER go with you? I don't even know who you are…" she refused, not letting go of her brother. She wouldn't leave him like this.

"Heh… I am Uchiha Sasuke, and I live only to kill my brother. I seek power, and this shard has what I need. You said there were more and I want them, so you're going to show me where they are," the man said, looking over his shoulder at her.

Sango gaped, "I don't care who you are or who you want to kill… I'm not about to help you after you killed the only family member I had left!"

Sasuke turned, striding toward the cowering girl in that important way. He bent down to talk face-to-face with her, looking into her eyes menacingly. It was obvious how scared she was, but he didn't care.

"You don't have much of a choice in the matter," he said simply, picking her up and propping her over his shoulder. She resisted, kicking and screaming crazily, something that got on the power hungry boy's nerves.

To fix his problem he sent a very mild chidori through her body, knocking her out. If she wouldn't cooperate with him now, he'd just have to make her do so later.

With that he walked to the door, pushing through it easily. For now he'd wander the halls to get a better feel of this place, and then he'd focus on obtaining the jewel.

:end of chapter 22:

OK, so brief explaination of the format I'm using for this part of the story. I wanted to do something like what I did with my first fanfiction, Across Space and Time: an Inuyasha Story, but a little different. See, I realize now that what I did in that was WAY too dragged out, making it boring. I liked the concept of the multiple things going on at the same time thing, but didn't want to repeat what I did before. So I divided each battle into two parts, and then grouped them together like this.

How do you all think it works?

Now... about Temari's winning attack. I have to admit, I don't even know if it exists. I found it on wikipedia when I was searching up everyone's attacks (there's so many, and they slipped my mind...), so it might be true and it might not be. Either way, in this fanfiction she has a really powerful one-eyed sickle weasle (whatever that is) that she summons. Just thought I'd clarify that.

Anyway, things are going good. Still working on cleaning out my sister's old room (she had a LOT of junk in there) so we can convert it into an office for my mom. Nobody's bought the desks or dressers yet, so I have yet to upgrade my room. I'm going to put a nice desk in there, since I'm not liking where I work now. It'll be nice to have my workstation in my room instead of in the hall. But yeah; once we're all done my room will be a lot better suited for my writing and stuff, because it'll have a nice corner desk in there. I can't wait!

Now, back to the fanfiction! It's coming along really good. I've been putting all my time into typing it up (and playing TF2, because I'm still utterly addicted), because I feel I've been writing it for too long. I don't know why I feel that way; considering how long it was on haitus on multiple occasions, it really hasn't been all that long at all. But anyway... you can expect for it to be totally completed by the start of the next school year, hopefully. At the rate I'm going, I'll definatley do it before then.

Took my laptop into the shop the other day to get it worked on... just told them to install a few programs and clean it up and make some stuff work (disc drive and auto run didn't work at all, and it seemed to be overheating). It was pretty cheap, but they didn't do too good of a job. I don't blame them, though; it's mostly because of Vista. I asked them to install a Japanese Learning program so I can learn Japanese, as well as Diablo II. Neither of them worked. Which really sucks. And now the scroll on my touchpad doesn't work. They made the autoplay work for the disc drive, but now it doesn't work for any of the usb ports. It's almost as messed up as when I sent it in, only now it's messed up in different ways. Bleh.

But yeah... what can ya do?

Also, I've been making more fanpoems lately. They're Blood Sport related (a battle to the death competition between people's Irken OCs) and there are a lot of cool Irkens entered. So I thought to show my enthusiasm and stuff I'd make a fanpoem for everyone's character. This has gotten in the way of typing this fanfiction, but not too much; I finish each poem in about 10 minutes, so they don't take all that long to make. The thing is, though, I have to make 45 of them. But yeah; it's fun, so I'll continue doing it.

Should I get caught up in stuff, the next chapter will come out in two weeks. If not, it may be out sooner. It all depends on when I work and how much I work on writing the rest of this and pretty much everything else. Two weeks for sure, though. If not sooner. I'm hoping for sooner.


	23. Final Encounter

Chapter 23

Kanna just stood there calmly, barely moving. At the perfect time, when Sai sent out part of his army to 'persuade' her to talk of Naraku's secrets, she decided it would be best to defend herself, a decision that came not a moment too soon.

Her movements weren't extraordinary or sudden. In fact, she barely moved at all. The most inconspicuous of movements, she merely shifted her weight and fiddled with her mirror a bit.

That, however, was all it took. At the very last second she activated the mirror, putting into effect its soul-sucking abilities. It would guarantee her safety and also act as a powerful attack.

The mice and birds and snakes nearest the mirror tried to get away once they began to get pulled into the endless void, but to no prevail. As they struggled they slowly flew through the air, until finally the confines of the mirror engulfed them.

As soon as they were lost in the depths of the mirror Sai staggered back a few steps. The oddest thing had just happened; as they'd slipped into the mirror an odd feeling had taken over, as if a piece of him had disappeared along with his inky minions.

"Interesting… now I know what'll happen…" Kana said softly, looking curiously at her opponent. This was a first for her as well; usually the mirror got the entire soul in one go, but she saw now that this would turn out to be a little more complicated than that.

Sai looked madly at the girl before noticing something. Reaching up he wiped his forehead to find that it was slightly damp. He stared at his hand blankly, nearly unable to process this.

"Impossible… I've been trained to have no emotion. How could I possibly be scared of her, a little kid? I… I…" he murmured, staring at the beads of sweat he'd wiped from his forehead. It didn't compute.

"Trained to have no emotion… impossible. You must be created emotionless, or you will never obtain such a quality. All living beings have feelings of some sort. A soul, however… whether or not you think you've escaped the constraints of your emotions, you DO have a soul," Kanna told him calmly.

"My soul? What's that got to do with anything?" Sai asked madly, his almost non-existent emotions getting the best of him for once.

"You know that burning feeling you felt when my mirror sucked up your creatures? That was a piece of your soul being ripped from your very being. It seems that you put a bit of your soul into everything you create, however small," she explained dully, allowing her mirror to suck up a few more of the creatures.

Again the intense pain surged through him, now worse than before. As the pain lessened he breathed heavily, deeply. He suddenly felt weaker, as if withering away with every attack. He realized then that his greatest attack had become his greatest weakness.

That, however, didn't seem to stop him. Running away now would only prove he didn't have his emotions under control. There was only one thing he could do: continue fighting, and try to outsmart his puny opponent.

Somehow, he'd have to break that mirror of hers without having too much more of his soul taken away.

"Well, no matter. I can still beat you before you reduce me to a soulless bag of flesh, and that's all there is to it!" he said darkly, creating a monstrous being of ink.

He no longer would try to get information about her master, Naraku. It would be too dangerous a risk, and he had to get this over with quickly. If he didn't, he knew it would only be likely that more and more of his soul would enter that mysterious mirror.

As he commanded some more of his smaller minions to attack he thought up a quick plan. He hoped it would work, and there was only one-way to find out for sure.

The critters charged, scattering at one point so the girl couldn't get them all at once. While she did get a good few of them many remained untouched, much to Sai's relief. Those he did sacrifice, however, didn't fail to take a chunk of him with them.

Wincing in pain he glared at the child. How could she be so calm while slowly killing him? The concept baffled him, despite how he knew it was exactly what he'd done to so many of the ninja in his bingo book.

Now he knew how they'd felt in their last moments.

The ink animals that got around the defensive attack struck the girl, the snake still holding her in place. Their attacks did next to nothing, though, quite to Sai's disappointment.

As he grew weak so did his many creations, and that told him that he had to finish this as quickly as humanly possible. With that in mind he sent out one of his bigger, stronger, ink creatures.

The black lion leapt out from behind a mass of smaller animals, charging at its target. Continuously it ran back and forth in zigzags, avoiding the path of the mirror. Soon it was close enough to Kanna to attack, which it did right when it got the chance.

Raising its great paw to strike the lion brought it down with a powerful force, knocking the girl in the side of her torso. The impact sent her flying, spinning through the air. For a moment Sai thought he had her right where he wanted her again, but that hope soon shattered.

As she spun through the air the lion found itself caught in the mirror's view. It was unable to escape its pull, though it tried with a fierce effort, and was slowly sucked in.

Sai collapsed, breathing heavily. A burning pain filled his body, and he found himself too weak to get up. This was bad; that lion had gotten sucked in, taking the majority of his strength with it.

Even when he thought he had the chance to defeat this enemy, she bounced back and took away another part of him.

"Damn…" he muttered, looking up at her angrily. Knowing the end was near she stepped toward him, planning to finish this once and for all. It would be easy enough; all she had to do was take what little soul he had left that was linking him to his life.

"You were a formidable opponent. None of the others have ever been able to resist my mirror in such ways as you just demonstrated," Kanna said softly, stepping toward him.

Not wanting this to end like that, Sai tried to back away. It was no use, though; he was so weak he could barely move, let alone defend himself. Kanna drew ever nearer, and he found himself unable to do a thing about it.

The mirror soon activated, taking the last of his soul from the boy's body. As the last of it escaped the confines of his chest his eyes became glazed over, his body under a new control.

:Change of Focus:

"Gaara, are we getting close yet?" Naruto asked, growing impatient. They'd been walking for a while now in the enemy's territory, yet he was still somehow managing to find himself bored.

Gaara nodded, "Yeah. According to the directions Sai gave me, he should be just up ahead."

Everyone felt relieved; their search was coming to an end, and they were soon going to be able to save their own world. They knew not Naraku's power; they thought the rest would be easy. Oh, how wrong they were.

"Just a little farther… he should be in one of the rooms down here," Gaara announced upon coming to a long corridor. The walls were lined with doors. He signalled for the mice to lead the way, and they obediently scurried forward.

Before they could get too far, however, they were stopped in their tracks. Randomly they halted as if suddenly paralysed. As everyone looked on curiously time seemed to stand painfully still. Though the mice were frozen for only a few seconds, it seemed to take so much longer.

Wondering what on earth was going on, Naruto leaned in closer to investigate. When he least expected it the three mice started to bloat, growing ever so slightly.

He knew something was up, but wasn't able to get away in time. Before he got a chance to back away the mice suddenly exploded.

"Gwaa!" the boy cried out, jumping back. He was too slow, though, and ink splattered al over his face. He struggled to get it off, caught in the moment, clawing at his face madly.

Everyone had a good laugh about it; it was hard not to, when he was making such a fool of himself. Their laughter soon ceased when they realized what this meant, though, and when that realization hit the mood very quickly turned gloomy.

"Sai…" Sakura muttered, contemplating the troublesome matter, "You don't think Sai could've…?"

Although she couldn't find it in herself to finish the sentence, everyone instantly knew what she was getting at. Horrified looks crossed their faces as they one by one thought about it, a tense silence settling over them.

His minions dying randomly like that could mean only one of two things: either he'd had to destroy them himself to be able to use more power in his fight, or he'd actually been defeated. Since he knew that they needed the mice to get to the real Naraku, they automatically assumed it was the latter.

"No…" Gaara muttered softly. He'd known this would be dangerous, but what hadn't crossed his mind were the possible deaths that might result. He turned to the others, "We have to go back for him."

Naruto agreed, voicing his opinion loudly, "Gaara's right! He could still be alive… we have to go help him, before it's too late!"

Sakura seemed unable to decide what to think. She was in shock, not willing to accept another comrade's death. She'd lost too many in the war on her world, and she most definitely did not want to repeat that trend here.

Kakashi, on the other hand, was thinking in a completely different way. He knew the consequences of going back now, and really didn't want to take that risk. They were so close now, and going back was no longer an option.

"No, we're going to have to move forward," he said to the others' dismay, "Right now we have to get to this Naraku guy and once we deal with him we can go back for Sai. I know you guys might not like it, but it's the only choice we have right now."

Naruto exploded, "What the hell? Our teammate's in trouble, and we have to go help him! How could you even think otherwise?"

"Logic," Kakashi explained calmly, "We're so close to our goal. By the time we would get to him it would most likely be too late to save him. It would end up being a waste of time and effort… and we might not even be able to find our way back here afterward. I don't like saying this, but we'll be better off if we leave him be."

"But…" Gaara started, though he didn't finish. By the tone of their grey-haired leader's voice, there would be no arguing the matter. They were continuing on, and that was that.

Kakashi nodded, thankful that they saw things his way. With everyone understanding the situation this would be so much easier. Sai's fate would still undoubtedly be on their minds, but at least they could look forward to possibly saving him.

"Now, Gaara, do you remember which of these rooms he's in?" Kakashi inquired, hoping that he'd remember. For them to advance without delay that information would need to be known.

Gaara thought for a moment, trying desperately to remember. It was on the tip of his tongue and he knew that, but he just couldn't find that piece of info. After a moment of two he looked around and admitted, "No, it kind of slipped my mind…"

Kakashi sighed heavily. This would be so much more difficult if they didn't know where he was. Thinking up a bit of a plan he told everyone, "Well, then… I guess we'll just have to check every one of them and–"

Something cut him off before he could finish the sentence, an evil laugh coming from down the hall. It seemed to be calling out to them, summoning the ninja forward. Somehow they all knew who it was, and followed the eerie laughter. It led them to one of the doors, and they knew that this was it.

:End of Chapter 23:

So, Sai lost his fight and now the rest of them are about to face one of their greatest foes ever, Naraku. What happened to Sango and Sasuke? What will become of Kagome? How will it all end?! Did Temari live through the battle of hers, or die after defeating Kagura? What on earth is Kanna planning to do with Sai's body? You'll know soon. Very soon. Yup, very, very soon. Hopefully.

Anyway... yeah. I almost have the very last part of this done, the fourth minichapter at the end. I still have to type out everything after this chapter, though; hopefully I'll have that done soon. I'll try to not be too distracted in the coming days so I can type a lot, OK?

That might be a tad hard to do, though; I just got a new mp3 player, my first ipod. I'd heard the stories about how cool they are, but this thing is freaking amazing! I have every single song I have on it, and some of the movies I made myself, and a crapload of podcasts! I've been doing nothing but exploring its features for a day or two now. And I'm currently addicted to a podcast dedicated to my favorite video game, TF2. It's called Control Point, and if you have an ipod and/or like Team Fortress 2, I really suggest you check it out. They have lots of tips and randomness and humor and everything.

But yeah. Next chapter should be up in two weeks. I'm hoping for one week, but it all depends on how prone I am to getting distracted in the coming days. I'm thinking it won't be too bad, but I have camp coming up in about three weeks, so there's no telling... In any case, stay tuned for chapter 24!


	24. Friend or Foe?

Chapter 24

Slowly Naruto reached for the doorknob, pushing the door open. Knowing that they couldn't turn back now, the four of them stepped inside, all but ready for this meaningful encounter.

"Ah, so you've finally arrived. Here to take back the human girl, I assume?" he laughed creepily, motioning to the thing behind him.

There stood Kagome, encased in a barrier to prevent her escape. Of course, they didn't know for sure if it was the young lady they were looking for, but she was his hostage so they assumed it was.

This was it; the real Naraku was before them as was the one they were trying to save. This was where they would make their stand and defeat him, so they could all go back to their own world.

"Yeah, that's exactly what we're going to do!" Gaara hissed. He knew that this wouldn't be ended easily, and was preparing himself for the battle he knew would come.

"Well I'm very sorry, but I'm afraid I can't let you do that… you see, I need this girl to find me the jewel shards. But I doubt you'll leave it at that; you're all persistent and stubborn, just as bad as Inuyasha and his little 'gang'," the evil half-demon taunted.

Naruto was about to make a threatening retort, but never quite got to it. Something distracted him, momentarily drawing his attention away from the enemy.

A side door slowly swung open with a creak, and a young man stepped out from the darkness of the hall. Naruto jumped in excitement, happy to see that at least one of his comrades had survived.

"Sai, you're alive! I knew he wouldn't take you so easily!" he exclaimed, running up to his team-mate, "Come on, you're just in time. Let's defeat this guy!"

Sai didn't answer, staying right where he was. He didn't move at all, causing Naruto to become curious. Wondering what was going on, Naruto crept closer to the boy, wanting to investigate.

Soon he was close enough to reach out and touch Sai, but that was as far as he got. Sai reached for his sword suddenly, bringing it between them. Naruto stepped back, unsure of what to think. It was then that he noticed something random.

Looking into Sai's eyes curiously he found that there was something different about them. They seemed odd, colder than before. His fascination blinding him to the events unfolding, his reaction slowed.

Swiftly Sai swung his sword at him, slicing his arm open. Naruto staggered back, a look of bewilderment on his face. He may be rude and peculiar at times, but never would he draw his sword and openly attack a comrade.

Naruto swung around, glaring at Naraku. With his voice full of rage he screamed, "Bastard! What the hell did you do with him?"

Naruto cackled devilishly, "I did nothing… my underling, however, is a whole different story. He was rash and basically gave up his soul to my minion and now he's under her control. It's his own fault he ended up this way… and now you're going to pay for his stupidity."

With that Sai lurched forward, swinging his blade at the yellow-haired boy again. This time Naruto managed to dodge, bunny-hopping to the other side of the room. As he stood there Sakura rushed to heal his wounds.

Naruto looked down at his arm while Sakura closed the wound, still not quite able to process this. He hadn't even noticed the large amount of blood running from the gash Sai'd dealt him or the pain, until now. He decided to ignore it completely, though; he had work to do, and couldn't be distracted by a mere flesh wound.

A growl escaped his throat, pure anger flowing through him. How dare this villain take Sai as a pawn without his consent! He would pay for forcing Sai to be his slave, Naruto would make sure of it.

"You'll pay for this… I'll make sure of it," he growled, leaping at the enemy. While in the air he created a few shadow clones to assist him. Getting ready for a full-on battle he flew through the air, winding up a punch he was sure would do some damage.

Sai was fast, jumping in front of Naraku to protect him. He skilfully swung his blade and surprisingly soon only the real Naruto was left standing. Not knowing what to do, Naruto backed down for the time being and rejoined his team. While he wanted to deal with Naraku, he didn't want to fight one of his own to accomplish that.

"Damn it all…" he muttered, venting his frustration by punching the wall nearest him. Once he cooled off a bit he turned to the others and asked, "Guys, what should we do? We can't hurt Sai… but we have to get to Naraku."

For a moment they were silent, thinking things over. Sakura was the first to speak, her words slightly perplexing, "That… that isn't Sai. The real Sai would never willingly join forces with the enemy, and even if he was forced to, well… even then there's no way he'd do it."

"Unless something happened to make him not have a choice," Gaara added, thinking of how the people inhabiting parts of the castle had told him of the previous plans while he'd been under Naraku's control. He didn't doubt that that was exactly what had happened.

"Either way, Sakura's right," Kakashi noted calmly, extensively assessing the current situation, "It may be the real Sai's body, but he's obviously not all there. He won't act, feel, or think like the real Sai."

"You can't be saying we have to attack him…?" Naruto gaped, nearly not wanting to hear the answer.

"It's exactly what I'm saying. There's no way around it," he said firmly, looking suspiciously at their target. In no way was it Sai in any aspect other than appearance, which really made him not Sai at all.

Naruto opened his mouth to protest, but quickly decided against it. Even though he didn't want to accept it, he knew that this was the only way.

Still, he seemed unable to bring himself to launch an attack. Seeing this, Sakura stepped up for the task. Closing her eyes she channelled a good amount of chakra into her right hand.

Once she was ready she slowly opened her eyes, a determined and angry glint suddenly present in them. She would eliminate the threat without regret, because her opponent wasn't really Sai at all.

Suddenly she charged forward, screaming at the top of her lungs. She knew the screaming wasn't exactly necessary, but it seemed to give her the illusion of a bit more strength. Just before she reached her opponent she drove her hand into the ground, releasing the chakra she'd gathered up.

The ground before her ripped apart, the destruction of her super strength wreaking its havoc. Sai stumbled as the floor beneath him was torn to pieces by the devastating attack, quickly losing his balance and falling to the ground to be tossed around.

When the dust that had been turned up settled she saw that Sai's body was half buried in the rubble. Not wanting to leave the corpse of her comrade without properly saying goodbye, whether it was really Sai or not, she slowly walked up to him.

Pulling the giant piece of cement floor from his body as if it was something as small as a brick she slowly uncovered his form. One by one she threw the rocks to the side, finally lifting Sai's body to bring it to a safer place.

There soon would be a battle in the area, and she didn't want his body to get horribly mangled in the fray. Laying him down in a nearby corner she got up, ready to face Naraku alongside her team. She began to walk away to join them when she saw Naruto freaking out.

Suddenly Sai's eyes flashed open, though Sakura didn't notice. Her back was turned to him, so as he shakily got up she didn't realize it. From his pocket he drew a very sharp kunai, ready to strike.

Sakura looked oddly at Naruto, trying to figure out why he was randomly jumping up and down. There was a frantic look in his eyes, but she didn't know why. She soon got her answer.

Jumping around, Naruto tried to point behind her. Seeing that his actions were only causing her to look at him in a confused way, he decided to try another method of getting his message across.

Planting his feet and pointing steadily to the space behind his comrade he yelled crazily, "Sakura, behind you!"

Finally that message got across, and Sakura realized she was in danger. Her survival instincts kicking in, her movements suddenly turned offensive and forceful, the skills that the late Tsunade had taught her coming out.

Whipping around on the balls of her feet, she gathered as much chakra in her right hand as she could. She didn't know exactly what was behind her; whether it was Sai or someone else, and she didn't want to take any chances.

A fierce cry escaped her lips as she drove her clenched fist into her attacker's chest, a ruthless look raging in her eyes. She felt her super-charged fist make contact with his breast and heard his ribs shatter from the force of the defensive attack.

He gasped for air, but since he was pinned between the wall and Sakura's fist, he wasn't able to. Soon his body went limp, slumping onto Sakura's arm. She'd been overtaken by her instinct and now that she was back in control, she realized what she'd done.

Shock filled her eyes and mind when she saw Sai's lifeless body pinned against the wall, and as she stepped back his corpse fell to the ground. She couldn't believe it; even if it was in self-defence, she'd killed one of her own.

Initially she'd left him alive, though only slightly, finding herself unable to completely go through with the task. She'd thought she'd done the right amount of damage to him, but apparently she'd been wrong.

Tears welled in her eyes as she slowly continued backward, the sight of her dead teammate filling her with an intense fury. If it hadn't been for Naraku, none of this would have ever happened.

"Kukuku," Naraku laughed as he intently watched Sakura's reaction. He could tell she was torn, unable to decide whether she should mourn her friend's death or attack the one who'd driven her to commit this unspeakable act.

"You… you won't get away with this, you dirty bastard!" the girl screamed, Inner Sakura showing through. She whipped around to face Naraku. He'd just declared war, and there was no way in hell she'd go down without a fight.

Kakashi saw what was going on and realized he had to stop Sakura before she blindly attacked. She had the strength to back up most of her threats, but doing so now would put the rest of them in danger.

Before she could charge forward he dashed to her, holding her back. Calmly he told her in hopes that she'd cool down a bit, "Sakura, that's not a good idea. I know he made you… dispose of a very dear friend, but if you hadn't done that you'd be the one lying there right now. And if you attack without a plan think of what you could inadvertently be doing to the rest of us."

She sighed, her shoulders falling. He was right and she knew it, but that wouldn't stop her from wanting to destroy the evil half-demon.

"How touching," Naraku taunted, an evil grin on his face, "Looking for one another like only weak humans would. Pathetic. Though, I suppose congratulations of some sort are in order; by sacrificing a few of your own, you were able to come this far."

Sakura fought to hold back her emotions, fearing they would get in the way of her judgement. It was an unbelievably hard task, but by focusing all her concentration into it, she was able to stay in control.

"You've gotten this far, but I'm afraid it's as far as you'll get. I've had my fun with you, so… you can just to whatever you please for now. My poison should kill you soon enough," Naraku said, as he began to release his shouki into the room.

Sakura looked around fearfully, not knowing what to do. Under normal circumstances, when she had the correct supplies, this wouldn't be a problem. But when facing this mass of poison completely unprotected… well, that was an entirely different story.

:End of Chapter 24:

So, things are now going smoothly again. I'm hoping to get ahead in this again (or rather, for once) so I can let you guys know what happens ASAP. Because to be honest, I'm even getting hyped up about this, and I wrote it! But anyway, on to the actual contents of the chapter...

Now you know what happened to Sai. But if you think that was a twist, wait until you read what happens in the next few chapters... this is nothing compared to that!

Anyway... yeah. This chapter's pretty self-explanitory, so I think I'll leave it at that. I hope to have the next chapter out in a few days, or next Monday at the latest. Hopefully I'll be able to put one out every Monday until it's completely finished. Maybe twice a week if I go really fast and don't get distracted. But yeah...hopefully.

Until next time! :D


	25. The Battle Begins

Chapter 25

"Sakura… hold out as long as you possibly can. Naruto and Gaara, you too. I'll see if I can find a way to stop the poison from spreading and slowly killing us," Kakashi instructed.

His mask would slow the progression of the poisonous gas to some extent, but the same couldn't be said for the others. They had to find some way to protect themselves while he worked out a plan.

A determined look in his eyes the ninja reached up and grabbed hold of his headband. For this he'd have to use his Sharingan and with that in mind he revealed the eye that had been given to him.

As Naraku casually released more poison into the air Kakashi carefully studied his movements. His eyes widening, he realized that his best tactic would be useless in this situation.

In his own world this wouldn't be a problem, aside from if he was going up against someone with a bloodline limit. Here, however, that wasn't the case. Here in the Feudal Era they didn't use chakra, and the fighting styles of the ninja were either non-existent or only in the first stages of being developed.

Still, he kept his sharingan active, an idea in mind. It would take a bit of time, time that they may not even have, but he would try to bring out the mangekyo sharingan to banish Naraku to another dimension.

Meanwhile, the others were dealing with their own problems. On Kakashi's advice they'd covered their mouths and noses, but they were still beginning to feel the effects of the poison.

Naruto, his mouth covered with his shirt, turned to Gaara. He saw that things weren't going anywhere quickly, and he knew that they had to act now. Whether his teacher was whipping up a plan or not, they had to do something.

"Gaara… we have to do something. I don't know what's going on, but we really have to get going," he wheezed, alarm in his eyes, "Gaara… if you can, you have to get out of here. Go find some help… if you can, see if you can find Sango. Out of any of us, she has the most knowledge of this guy."

Though he didn't want to leave in such a dire time he knew that Naruto was right. Nodding, he made for the door. When he pulled on it, he was happy to find that it was unlocked. The door swinging open he lunged outside.

The air in the hall was amazingly fresh compared to that which was inside the room, and he couldn't help but take in a few big gulps of it. The freshness seemed to reenergize him, and he suddenly felt ready to face the task at hand.

Wanting to do at least something for his comrades, he thought to leave the door open for them. Surely having some of the poison waft out of the room would give them more of a chance against this guy.

Forming some sand into a wedge he created a doorstop, hardening it until it was rock solid. He shoved it under the open door, creating not only a vent for the poison to come through but also an escape route for his teammates if they needed it.

Having done all he could for the time being, Gaara set off down the hall in search of help. He started out optimistic, but as he walked he came to a troubling realization. He was in enemy territory, and finding help would be easier said than done.

Nonetheless he continued, knowing there was no other option. Compared to the others he had next to no fighting experience. And against someone such as Naraku, going into battle like that could only be called suicide.

"Damn it… how am I supposed to find help like this?" he muttered angrily to himself. He desperately wanted to help Naruto and the others, but walking around randomly like this was doing absolutely nothing for him. He was beginning to feel helpless.

He wasn't even sure that Naruto could win against this guy. Before he'd come to his senses and escaped Naraku's controlling grasp, he'd been living in the castle. In the whole time he'd lodged here the fiend had approached him only a few times. The power he'd shown Gaara had been devastating, and it had only been a fraction of what he could really do.

As he traversed the maze of hallways his spirits continued to droop. He was losing faith quickly, and was starting to debate whether he should just leave and try to correct the flow of his own time on his own, completely abandoning the people of this world.

He was just about to decide to save himself and leave when something caught his attention. It was a good thing he noticed this, or he would have been out of there.

Down one of the corridors he heard voices. They were familiar voices, and hearing them brought back a bit of his hope. Hastily he ran in the direction they were coming from, desperate to find the help Naruto had sent him to fetch.

Though it sounded like they were close by, Gaara soon realized that that was merely an illusion. Their voices were bouncing off the walls endlessly, making it hard for him to pinpoint their location.

It took a bit of preservation and patience, but Gaara stuck to his new mission. He'd find the ones these voices belonged to if it was the last thing he did; his friends needed him, and for once he'd be the one to come to the rescue.

Soon enough the voices started to get louder, and he knew then that he was getting closer to his target. He stopped at the end of the corridor he was currently running through, realizing that the people were right around the corner.

"Let me go!" a girl cried fiercely. Her voice was followed by the sounds of her hitting something, probably the one that was with her and apparently holding her captive.

"If I let you go, you'll run away," the man's voice said calmly, ignoring the fact that the girl was hitting him relentlessly.

Gaara knew one of the voices for sure, and the other sounded vaguely familiar. Growing more and more excited, he leaped into the next hallway to see the people he'd been sent to get. He smiled when he saw Sango, but when he was who was holding her that smile disappeared a bit.

"S-Sasuke?" he stammered, barely believing his eyes, "Is that you? But… how did you get here?"

"Hmm… so you have one inside you too…" Sasuke noted, feeling Shukaku's presence, "While that thing inside you brought you all here, it wasn't able to repair the rip it created in space and time. I merely reopened it and found myself here."

"But why? Why would you want to come here?" Gaara questioned, not quite sure of what to do. This random encounter confused him a little.

"I sensed a power unlike any I've ever felt, and decided to see what it was. And now I see it, so that's where I'm heading. Kyuubi's there too so feel free to follow… but be warned that getting in my way is something best avoided," the power hungry boy said calmly, as he walked past Gaara.

Needless to say, Gaara obediently followed. Had Sango not been propped up on Sasuke's shoulder, she too would have followed willingly; Kagome was with them too, and saving her was the goal of this mission.

"Hey, you can put me down now. I'm going that way anyway," she protested, though she'd long given up any meaningful struggling, "If you can see it, you don't really need me and – wait, what?"

She stopped suddenly in the middle of her sentence, cutting herself off. A bewildered look came upon her face, as if she'd just come to a shocking realization. In fact, that's exactly what had happened. She tried to shake off this shock so she could ask her captor something.

"You… you can see the shards of the Sacred Jewel? How? Only Kagome can see the Jewel when it's not right in front of her, and even then we don't quite know how…" she asked, looking curiously at his face. She was examining it for any hints of an answer, though she received none.

:Change of Time:

"We're here. They're just inside that open door over there," Gaara announced, thought he really didn't need to. The whole journey back to the others had been made in complete silence, with Sasuke leading the way. Gaara was actually very glad about this; in his frantic rush to find them he'd completely lost his way, and couldn't have led them back to save his life.

Sasuke stayed silent and calmly entered the room, pushing Gaara aside. Only now that they were at their destination did he allow Sango to go free, although she would have preferred he'd done it in a more civilized way.

She fell to the ground hard, having just been tossed carelessly off Sasuke's back. As she got up she rubbed her arm, a fierce stinging pain distracting her from the scene inside the room. The only thing that broke her distraction was Kirara, who upon rushing to Sango caused her to ignore everything else that was going on.

"Mew!" Kirara cried, jumping into Sango's arms. She'd thought the demon slayer would never return, yet here she was. It made her wonder, though; if she'd been so absorbed with possibly saving her brother, how'd she come to her senses… and who was this man who was still accompanying her?

"Oh, Kirara… you were right all along. I should have listened to you from the very beginning and now…" she sobbed, still unable to believe everything that had happened, "And now Kohaku's dead! He's dead, Kirara!"

There she broke into tears, unable to hold them back any longer. She'd lost her brother, the one she'd been fighting so long and hard to save, and now she knew she'd have to team up with his killer to defeat Naraku and save Kagome.

"Mew, mew?" Kirara asked, looking up at the one standing beside her. He was intimidating, and she wasn't sure whether to be happy that he might help them fight or run away afraid that he'd turn on them and join the enemy.

"That's the man who killed Kohaku. He says he can see the Jewel Shards, and wants them for himself for some reason. I… I don't know about him," she answered, her voice shaking.

The two quieted down, letting that sink in. Naraku, soon broke their silence however, when he decided that it was a good time to do some taunting.

"Kukuku," he chuckled evilly, "Brought back another pest for me to squash, have you, Sango? Too bad you'll all end like him over there in time."

He motioned to Sai, who lay face first on the floor. Still he hadn't moved since Gaara was last in the room, and was undoubtedly dead.

Only now that Naraku spoke up again did Sango become aware of her surroundings and what was actually going on. She stared in amazement at the scene, hardly believing how quickly everything had changed.

The one thing that stood out to her above any of the other things that were happening, however, was Kagome. Still she sat trapped in one of Naraku's barriers in the corner of the large room, just waiting to be rescued.

"Kagome!" she said, starting to walk forward. They were so close to saving her now that she figured they could just walk right up to her and take her back. That was improbable and she knew it, but she just wanted to be done with this whole ordeal at that point.

Before she got far Gaara, who stepped into her path, stopped her. He knew that it wasn't safe for her to do something like that right now, though she didn't realize why. This small act of protection seemed to anger her for some reason; why it did that, she didn't know.

"Gaara, let me go. I have to go get Kagome so we can get out of here," she demanded, common sense slipping from her, although she did nothing to forcefully get by.

He shook his head, refusing to obey. At the very least he felt he should give a reason, so he pointed ahead of them and said, "We can't… I've never seen him like this before, but I have a hunch that not much good can come of it right now."

She looked to where he was pointing, and an amazed look crossed her face. How she'd managed to overlook this she didn't know.

Standing on all fours in the middle of the room was Naruto, an odd orange substance covering his body. As some of this orange stuff began to form a tail he let out a deep menacing growl, a warning to all in the room.

:End of Chapter 25:

Well, I told you I'd update on or before Monday, which happens to be today! See! It's right here! Yeah... now on to the next one! (starts typing madly)

Anyway, on to the chapter comments of DOOM. Sasuke and Sango are back in the picture now. You know those twists I was talking about last chapter? Well, Sasuke coming into the picture as a near-main character isn't one of them. The actual twists are still to come, and believe me, they're epic compared to Sasuke showing up. You'll never see them coming!

So, what do you think will happen to everyone? Will they save Kagome? How many will fall to Naraku's power? What's going to happen to Naruto? How will they defeat the evil half-demon? You'll have to stay tuned to find out! You won't have to wait all that long now; there's only 5 main chapters left as well as 4 mini-chapters to tie up loose ends, so you'll know the rest of the story fairly soon. As with this chapter, I'll try to post the upcoming chapters ASAP.

Speaking of posting chapters ASAP, I figure I should tell you all of when I won't be posting anything. I'm going to camp from the 18th to the 25th, so the two Mondays I'd post a chapter on fall in that. I won't be on at all seeing as there's next to no technology there, so I'll either try to get those two chapters out before or after I go. I'm hoping for before, but things could change, as has been the case in the past.

Just thought I'd give you a heads-up on that.

Now, I'm happy to tell you that I've been typing like a madwoman lately, and in five days I've completely finished typing the rest of this fanfiction. That's... about nine chapters in five days. So yeah... I'm a tad beat, but it was totally worth it. That being said, I'm going to have a new way of posting these. Once I get a review for the latest chapter I'll post the next one. So once you post a review for this chapter I'll put up another, and so on and so forth.

So yeah. You can look forward to lots of chapters of this in the very near future.

Anyway... yeah. That's about it. Next chapter will ome out once I get a review for this chapter.


	26. Desparation

Chapter 26

"What's going on here, Kakashi? I wasn't gone that long, was I?" Gaara asked his superior, his voice riddled with confusion.

"Oh, you have no idea," Kakashi grunted, "Right after you left this guy started to taunt us and mock us, and he managed to get to Naruto. Of course, that's not a difficult thing to do, but still… Gaara, this is bad. He still might have some control right now, but if this goes on that won't last for long."

"Can't you do something to stop him?" the red-haired boy asked franticly. He could tell what Naruto was going through, and knew that soon he couldn't stop even if he wanted to.

"I… I'm afraid not. Yamato, the only one who can fully suppress the Fox Demon's chakra, passed away late last year. I think we had a small store of suppressing seals, but they were kept by Jariya," Kakashi said sadly, "Most of those we used over the years, and all the others perished in the war where we almost lost Naruto."

"Well… why wouldn't he have brought you more, if he knew Naruto was back on his feet?" Gaara asked, desperate to find some way to stop the transformation.

"Oh, I'm sure he would have, if he did in fact know," the man nodded slowly, "But chances are, he had no idea. See, he ran away a while back. Couldn't take it all and tried to find a way to stop all the war on his own. We haven't heard from him since."

Gaara's shoulders sank. He could do nothing to save his friend, even after all that the boy had done for him. Sadly he looked at Naruto, trying to think of something, anything, that had even the slightest chance of success.

An idea popped into his head not long after. He didn't think it had much of a chance of working, but it was definitely better than nothing.

Swiftly he turned to the one he'd met in the halls and asked, "Sasuke, maybe if he sees you he'll calm down a little. He's wanted to see you for so long to save you and now that you're here with us… well, if I can travel through time and space, anything is possible, right?"

Without a moment's hesitation Sasuke replied coldheartedly, "No. He's not worth the effort; if he allowed himself to become this thing, then he obviously doesn't care."

"Please, you may be our only chance at saving him," he begged, the desperation clear in his voice. He was growing frantic, unsure of what to do if Sasuke didn't help them.

"Like I said, he's not worth it. Whatever actions he takes, he'll have to take the consequences that come with them. I'm only here for the 'Sacred Jewel', as the people of this world call it," he said calmly, not taking his eyes off Naraku.

Gaara was about to take action and try to make Sasuke help him, but a sudden roar from Naruto penetrated his thoughts before he could. He looked nervously over at his companion, and almost wished he hadn't.

While he'd had his back turned to Naruto in order to beg for Sasuke's help, Gaara hadn't realized now bad his friend's condition really was. In the short time he'd been talking to the Uchiha, Naruto had grown yet more frantic due to Naraku's taunting, becoming more and more like the demon inside of him.

Already since he'd last looked, the number of Naruto's tails had risen from one to three. It was obvious that he was very quickly losing control. Whatever Naraku had done to provoke the guy, it had worked with flying colours; Naruto was more worked up that he'd been in a long while.

"Naruto!" Gaara called out franticly, getting ready to leap forward. Before he could to that, however, he felt someone press their arm against his chest forcefully to stop him. Looking to his left he saw that the arm belonged to Sakura.

"I wouldn't recommend that," she told him softly, remembering the only time she'd seen him like this. It had been during a battle with Orochimaru, and she'd learned that once he got to this point, even the things that mattered most to him became unrecognizable in his eyes.

"But why? We have to do something… maybe I can stop him… he was able to stop me…" he muttered, though he knew she spoke the truth. He'd been through a similar transformation in the past, and from experience knew that Naruto was gone.

Unless someone could either wear him down to the point of exhaustion, very forcefully beat some sense into him, or destroy Naraku, Naruto would remain unreachable.

"Gaara, Sakura, Sango… I suggest you keep out of the way for the time being," Kakashi said after a long silence, taking next-to-no notice of Sasuke standing there, "I don't want to accidentally hurt any of you in the process of my attack."

The three of them stepped back, no questions asked. It was rare that Kakashi walked to them in such a demanding tone, so it could only be that he was trying something highly dangerous.

Once they were safely out of harm's way Kakashi readied himself. He'd be using a fairly new technique, and wasn't quite sure what the effects on his body would be, so he wanted to be as prepared as he could.

Slowly he opened his eyes, revealing his weapon. His sharingan had transformed into a form more powerful than the one he usually used. As he vaguely noticed Sasuke looking at him with a feeling of loathing for not being an Uchiha but still having a more developed eye than him, he got his own gut feeling.

Deep down he knew that his attack wouldn't be enough to stop Naruto for the time being. The only thing he could do now was try to defeat Naraku, and after that hope for the best. If they were lucky, with the foe defeated, they'd somehow be able to save the boy.

"OK…" he muttered, looking directly at Naraku. He took care to aim his attack as well as he could, while Naraku merely continued to stand there, taunting Naruto and pushing him farther over the edge.

Concentrating all his energy into his attack he continued to look at the fiend, waiting for it to take effect. It didn't take long; he'd been charging it up this whole time, so he was pretty much ready.

The effects of his attack could be seen immediately, the space in front of them warping awkwardly like the trees had when they'd first found the castle. Although the two things looked the same, however, they were entirely different.

Naraku looked down at his arm in surprise, for the first time they'd been in his presence losing his cool just a bit. His arm seemed to be right in the centre of the ninja's attack, and for a moment what was happening scared him. Never before had he seen an attack quite like this.

He tried to get away from the peculiar assault, but found that he wasn't able to. Looking at his free hand he found that the space around him was becoming more and more warped. After a moment he realized that this was because he was slowly being pulled toward the centre of the attack.

"Keh… insolent bastard. You think this will work on me?" Naraku boasted, though soon after he felt himself get drawn in with a little more force. It was a bluff, an attempt to make them think their efforts were useless.

In reality, he had absolutely no idea how to counter this invisible attack.

So, unable to think up any other way to get out of this, the fiend decided to put all his effort into trying to force himself away. He knew that if he were to successfully get to safety there would no longer be a problem.

Laughing silently to himself he discovered that if he tried hard enough he could get away, for he slowly inched in the direction opposite of the attack's pull. These fools, even when they thought they were getting somewhere they were still just standing still.

When Kakashi saw that the enemy was managing to pull away he closed his eye, stopping the attack. If its target moved it would be of no use to them and only drain his energy, so he'd have to reposition it.

Groaning slightly he put his hand over his eye. He'd known that this attack was a double-edged sword of sorts, but this was really taking it out of him. Every second he used the eye he felt his level of energy drop.

However, he knew he had to at least launch one last attack. At the very least he had to allow his comrades an opportunity, put them at an advantage if he could.

He still had enough chakra left to launch another attack, and he intended to do just that. Taking aim again, he reactivated the trans-dimensional warp, this time on Naraku's other arm. His aim was a little off, and the attack landed near his wrist.

Again the evil half-demon began to move away, just as the air started to dement. This wasn't good; the jewel was giving him the strength to escape the deadly attack, and Kakashi didn't like it.

His energy draining fast, the ninja decided to use what little chakra he had left to stop the fiend in his tracks. Keeping his sharingan trained on his target he bolted forward, his remaining chakra becoming visible around his right hand.

Naraku's eyes widened in shock; he hadn't been expecting his opponent to launch such a suicidal attack. Yet here Kakashi was, charging at him will all the force he could muster.

Unable to dodge the sudden assault, Naraku was forced to take on all the power of the blow. As Kakashi's chidori powered through the fiend's gut he couldn't hold back a grunt of sorts; it didn't hurt him exactly, but it sure wasn't the most comfortable thing he'd been through.

The attack itself wasn't the thing that startled him, though; it was the effect of the attack that caught him off-guard.

As the ninja's attack pierced Naraku's body, the lightning from the attack spread. He still had his sharingan activated, causing the chidori to ripple through the warped air randomly, electrocuting the whole of the half-demon's body.

However, that wasn't the only thing that the chidori touched. Kagome, who was still floating in Naraku's nearby barrier, was also in range of the attack. Naraku's attempt to get away had placed the two of them closer together, and she too had been caught in his second sharingan attack.

Her scream of pain rang through the room, penetrating even the barrier Naraku had trapped her in. Immediately the others noticed, and knew they had to stop the grey-haired ninja before he caused too much damage.

"Kakashi, stop! You're hurting her!" Sango hollered, as she hopelessly watched her dear friend twitch and convulse violently.

Kakashi tried to stop upon hearing Sango cry out, but to his dismay he found that he couldn't pull away and rejoin the group. He'd gotten himself too close to his own attack, and now he couldn't escape.

He'd known that this could possibly happen, but he hadn't expected it to. He'd gone into this thinking he might not fall victim to his own attack. Unfortunately that wasn't the case, and he was slowly being drawn into the warp.

"I can't stop it!" he called back to his teammates, as his arm entered the black hole. He knew there was on getting out of this, and although he regretted not being able to do more, he was oddly happy.

As bad as Naraku was, Naruto was much worse when he was in the state he was currently in. All he knew was he didn't want to be around to whiteness the young ninja's rampage.

His comrades looked in the mirror, unsure of what to do. At one point Gaara started forward to try to help him, but again Sakura stopped him before he got too far. There was nothing they could do without putting themselves in danger in the process.

Soon all that was left of the grey-haired ninja was his head. He'd made sure that it would be the last part of his body to pass through; if it had been any other part, he'd be without that limb in whichever dimension it was that he was heading to.

"Save the girl… and then get the hell out of here!" he told them, as his head disappeared in the blackness. He was gone, and soon after the warp closed. The sharingan was on longer there to power it.

Naraku looked around, his cockiness returned. He laughed, "Kukuku. That fool gave his life to protect you, and all he managed to do was server my arms. Pathetic."

:End of Chapter 26:

Oh my gosh, what has Kakashi done?! He gave up himself for seemingly nothing! How on earth could he do that?!

You know those twists I was talking about? You can probably guess that this was one of them. But rest assured, there's more. I'm putting twists up until the very end! I'll keep you guessing, don't you worry.

I've been working on parody songs again, mostly TF2 themed. And a fanfiction. But yeah.. the songs.. I hope to get one for each class done; so far I have the spy, an overall Valve character one, and the start of a Christmas one based on 2Fort. I might do one for TF2 as a whole as well. Most of these will be getting contributed to a TF2 songbook of sorts, so I'm pretty proud of that.

Also... I've been getting really involved in a podcast community called Control Point. It's a podcast about my favorite game, TF2. If you really want to know what the person who's writing these fanfictions sounds like, there's a voice clip of me in their latest podcast. Yeah, I got onto a podcast. So yeah, that was pretty cool. As well, I've sent my first TF2 song in to them, so there's a slight chance they might perform it since I can't play music or sing worth crap. That's also pretty cool. And I've also set up a group for them at a site I go to regularly, so I've been busy with getting that up and running as well.

Hurra for shameless self advertising!

Anyway, that's about it for now. Next chapter will come out once I get a review for this one.


	27. Sliver of Hope

Chapter 27

"You bastard…" Gaara muttered angrily, glaring at the enemy. They'd lost one of their most valuable and needed ninja, yet this guy was laughing at them as if he'd done nothing before disappearing.

"Gaara, don't let him get to you. If you let your anger get the best of you, you'll be doing exactly what he wants. Please, stay in control," Sakura pleaded. Naruto had already lost it; they didn't need Gaara to do the same.

He tried his hardest to calm down. He knew that he couldn't allow himself to transform, although that was easier said than done. Eventually he regained control, and thought to look around. If they were going to continue, he needed to know how desperate the situation was.

Looking to his right he saw Sasuke grinning madly, no doubt planning how to get his hands on Naraku's power source. Beyond him Naruto stood on all fours, growing more and more rabid and dangerous with every passing moment; he was beyond saving now, and already had four chakra tails.

Naraku's surprise had since disappeared and been replaced by his usual smugness, as he was back to taunting them despite having had his arms ripped off. To Gaara's left was Sango crying madly, overwhelmed by everything that had just happened.

Gaara tried to comfort her, "Sango, it's OK. We may not have done much yet, but at least we did something. He won't last much longer."

"But, Gaara…" Sakura started nervously, interrupting him, "Kakashi hit him in the gut with a chidori. That's enough to finish nearly anyone off, but… he's still standing there, acting like it never even happened. How can this be?"

He'd noticed that too, but hadn't wanted to say anything. They'd already lost so much in this ordeal, and he'd wanted to preserve at least a little bit of their hope. Now, however, that seemed unlikely; they were down to three, while Naraku was as good as ever.

"His heart…" Sango sobbed suddenly, "It's his heart. No matter what we do to him, it won't make any difference if we don't destroy his heart!"

"Why his heart? He should be dead; Kakashi went right through his gut…" Gaara muttered, becoming more and more confused.

"Things aren't the same here as they are wherever you're from! That might have worked in your world, but not here!" she shrieked, completely snapping. Before she exploded too much she quieted down and began to cry again.

"Sango, it's OK. We'll find a way to defeat him," Sakura encouraged, trying to cheer her up, though it had absolutely no effect on the girl.

"I should never have brought you here… I shouldn't have gotten distracted…" she wailed, blaming herself for all that had happened. Sick with grief, she continued, "I should have told him not to do it…"

"Hey, just stop, OK! Yeah, he's gone because you didn't speak up. But crying isn't going gong to bring him back, so STOP!" Sakura huffed violently, grabbing Sango's shoulder and forcing her to look up.

Sango looked shocked for a moment, having never been dealt with in such a way by a fellow comrade. Soon that wore off, though, and she wiped the tears from her face. She couldn't quite come to terms with what had happened, but Sakura was right.

"Then w-what do we d-d-do now? We can't possibly beat h-him now…" Sango muttered, quickly losing what little spirit she had left. As far as she knew, all hope was lost.

"I don't know," Gaara said, as he looked around. He had to think of something to get them out of their current predicament. Instead of finding something that would save them, however, he discovered something that could very well be the death of them.

While they'd been arguing over Kakashi's death and generally feeling sorry for themselves, Naruto's instability had grown to even more dangerous levels. At the current time he was growing a fifth tail, and it looked like he was preparing to launch an attack of some sort.

Gaara didn't know how powerful Naruto was when his inner demon took over, but he knew that the ninja was rapidly becoming more of a danger to them. And now that he was going to use the massive stores of energy at his disposal, it could only mean one thing for the ones remaining.

If they wanted to live, they had to get out of there as fast as they could.

"Guys…" he said nervously, eyeing Naruto, "We should really get out of here. He looks like he's about to do something big, and if we stay here we'll get caught up in it. Sakura, you know what I mean, right?"

She nodded solemnly, glancing over at Naruto. She hated to see him in such a horrible state and wanted desperately to help him, but she knew she couldn't take that risk. Doing so would be suicidal, and would seal her fate.

As she entered a state of deep thought her gaze began to wander. Her mind didn't bother to register anything she saw, for it would only distract her. She was torn between staying and going, and had to sort out her emotions somewhat before she did anything.

The one thing that snapped her out of her thoughts wasn't Gaara's insistent warnings or Sango's whimpering and gasping for proper breaths; it was Naruto, for he suddenly gave a menacing roar.

The girl jumped slightly in surprise. When she recovered she realized that her gaze had shifted to Kagome and her bubble. A look of amazement crossed her face, for she couldn't believe they hadn't noticed it earlier.

"Sango, Sango! There still may be hope!" she exclaimed excitedly, shaking the girl's shoulder gently, "The others may be gone, but we still have a chance to do what we came here to do!"

"Heh… how's that possible…?" Sango asked moodily, as she got up and started to walk toward the door. She was giving up; already she'd caused so much trouble and destroyed more lives than she cared to remember.

If she quit now then no longer would people have to suffer for her selfishness. She felt that she already couldn't live with the mass of damage she'd caused.

"Sango, stop…" Gaara said softly. Unsure of what to do he'd followed Sakura's wandering gaze, and consequently had observed the same thing as her.

She only looked sadly over her shoulder before continuing to the door, her spirit nearly completely destroyed.

"Keh," Sasuke chuckled dryly, speaking up for the first time in a while. He was finally done analyzing the situation and had a plan on how to get the Jewel. He'd overheard the others conversation.

"What's so damn funny?" Gaara growled fiercely, glaring madly at the ninja. This really was no laughing matter, though he seemed to think differently.

"The girl, she gives up too quickly. If she continues on like this she'll never get anywhere," he said calmly, "Sometimes things happen on the way to a goal, but you can't let that stop you. If you give up, you'll never get your revenge."

"Who said anything about revenge? We just have to do something quickly, is all!" the red-haired boy argued. He could feel his temper raising quickly… this guy had some nerve!

"Revenge? REVENGE?" Sango huffed, as she backed up to rejoin the group, "No revenge could possibly be worth this! Kakashi, Naruto, Sai, possibly Temari, all gone! If that's what it takes, I don't want any part in this 'revenge'!"

"Weakling," Sasuke accused, "I know from experience that revenge is all there is in life."

"And speaking of which, why do you need the Jewel so badly? What did your brother ever do to you that's so horrible?" Sango fumed. She could feel her temper rising as well.

"What did he do?" he laughed madly, "He killed everyone close to me, that's what he did! My entire fucking clan, dead. I'm the only survivor, and as such I've vowed to avenge them."

Sango was about to make an argument, to state how Naraku had done all these horrible things and she still wasn't that motivated to get revenge, but something interrupted her before she could.

"If we don't do something NOW," Sakura shouted at the top of her lungs, the others looking her way in surprise, "Kagome will DIE! We have a chance to save her, and here you are bickering. LET'S GO!"

A bit shocked Sango asked, "Wait… what?"

Sakura merely pointed in Kagome's direction. Sure enough, when Sango looked to see what was so important, she was that they very well might have a chance to save the young priestess.

Kakashi's last attack, his final Mangekyo sharinagan, had done more than just attack Naraku. Being centred on the half-demon's wrist, the bubble containing Kagome had also been within the attack's range.

His chidori hadn't been entirely to stun the fiend, either; it had served another purpose: to knock the girl unconscious so she wouldn't draw any unneeded attention to herself.

Having faith that his remaining comrades would find her and rescue her when the time was right, he'd used the last of his efforts to make their job easier.

Now she lay in the bubble almost peacefully, her left leg dangling from the hole Kakashi's sharingan had created in the barrier. Naraku seemed not to notice, keeping an eye on everyone else.

"It looks like Naruto's attack will be ready soon. I've seen it only once before, when he had three tails, and it's something to be feared. If you wan find a way to get her out of there as quickly as possible…" Sakura started, looking to Sango.

"I can do that easily, but what about getting out of here? If his power is as fearsome as you say, being this close can't be good," Sango asked, a determined look creeping back into her eyes.

"Don't worry about that, I'll get us out of here," she replied, "Now just get going! We don't have that much time left."

Sango nodded. Looking to her cat demon companion she said softly, "Kirara, let's go. We haven't been of much use yet, but now we can finally save Kagome. Kirara, you ready?"

"Mew, mew!" Kirara said fiercely, transforming into her bigger form. She allowed her friend to climb onto her back, and soon they were flying toward Kagome's bubble.

Naraku noticed them, but didn't seem to care; he was too busy focusing on Naruto. He knew something was coming, but he wasn't quite sure what.

"Kagome…" Sango sighed in relief, as she took hold of her leg. She found it difficult to pull her from the barrier without hurting her, but she did it as quickly and painlessly as she could. Before she knew it she was back with the others, Kagome draped over Kirara's back.

"OK, everyone gather 'round. Sasuke, I don't suppose you're coming with us?" Sakura asked, and when he shook his head she continued, "OK, then. Hold on. We'll be out of here soon, definitely before he attacks."

With that Sakura teleported them to the safety of the forest outside the castle, just before Naruto let loose his devastating attack.

:End of Chapter 27:

Oh my gosh, Kakashi's last act actually did them some good! They finally have Kagome back! But now the question is: whatever will happen with Naruto's fight with Naraku, and are they actually safe? What became of Temari? What of Sasuke? WHAT THE HECK WILL HAPPEN NEXT?!

You'll have to wait until the next chapter to see! Don't worry, there's yet a few twists in here. I still say I'm going to keep you guessing until the very end.

So I have been typing a LOT lately, as I've said in previous chapters. I've now gone from 100 pages to 12, so I'm hoping to start the new school year off fresh. It feels good to have a nearly empty binder again...

Just like I promised, I'm posting this as soon as I discover another review, so I'm actually being true to my word update-wise for once! One downside, though: I'll be at camp starting tomorrow, so I won't be able to update until I get back. But yeah... I'll update next Monday when I get back and then after that it'll be when I get a review.

'Til next time!


	28. An Ongoing Battle

Chapter 28

"Sakura, how did you learn that space-time ninjutsu? I thought only high level ninja knew how to teleport like that…" Gaara asked, slightly confused. Though he was coming to realize what had gone on in his absence, he was still in the dark concerning countless things.

"Who says I'm not a high level ninja?" she joked, but soon grew a bit more serious, "Before Tsunade passed away she made it mandatory that every ninja learn how to do it, as a way as escaping trouble."

She looked around curiously having answered Gaara's question. They hadn't realized it, but they'd been in that castle for quite a while; it was late at night, and the sky was completely dark, illuminated only by a nearly full moon.

"Smart," Gaara said simply, as he looked to the castle. He knew that soon Naruto would unleash his attack, and was waiting for the fireworks.

Still in the novice stage of learning the ninjutsu, Sakura hadn't quite perfected it. The escape from the castle had been bumpy and violent and they'd gotten a little roughed up, though none of them cared. They were out of harm's way for the time being.

"Kagome… thank goodness we got you out of there," Sango muttered, as she laid her body down on the soft pillow-like grass to rest properly. Already she was starting to come to, the paralysing effects of Kakashi's chidori beginning to wear off.

"Sango, I don't mean to intrude or anything, but exactly where are we?" Sakura asked randomly, "I know we're outside the castle, but… where?"

Sango raised her head to look around. She'd been so focused on Kagome for the last few minutes that she hadn't noticed anything else. Now she realized that she didn't know where they were either.

If she and her gang had found this castle before this whole ordeal had taken place she probably would know the area, but that hadn't happened. She was still in awe that they'd found Naraku's hideout so quickly; with Inuyasha they'd been searching for years and hadn't come even relatively close.

"Kirara, you up for some scouting?" she asked her faithful companion. As she'd predicted, the answer was a resounding 'yes'. When she received her consent she said, "All right, away we go. Let's find out where we are."

Kirara roared confidently and lifted off, Sango skilfully staying atop her back. Very soon the two were once again soaring above the treetops, a light breeze blowing through their hair.

Feeling suddenly refreshed, Sango sighed. She felt a bit more relaxed now, but she still didn't allow that to distract her from her scouting.

She found that they were farther away than she'd first thought, in a clearing in the forest to the south of the castle. Nonetheless, she could still see random details fairly clearly.

The moon casting an eerie glow over the castle, she scoured the area from up there in the air. After a few minutes of hardcore searching she found something, however small it was.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw the tiniest glimmer on the ground, just a little ways away from the castle. Slightly intrigued, she strained her eyes in the darkness to get a closer look.

"Oh my god…" she gasped, hardly believing her eyes. She knew right then that she had to go get the others before continuing.

Lying there on the ground was Temari, looking pretty beat up. The glint of her polished fan in the moonlight had been the thing that had attracted her attention. From way up in the air she couldn't tell the ninja's exact condition, but she'd investigate that later.

Hurrying back to the others, her mind raced. She barely knew what was going on, and trying to understand it made her brain throb. Giving up for the time being, she focused on the task at hand.

Upon reaching the others she was bombarded with questions. Though she wanted desperately to state her case, she didn't get the chance to right away.

"What did you see?" Gaara asked, "Where are we?"

"W-what happened? I don't remember anything… who are these people?" Kagome asked, for she was slowly coming to.

Sakura seemed to be the only one who noticed Sango's current frazzled state. She pointed out, "You seem short of breath and you're slightly pale… Sango, are you OK? What on earth happened out there?"

"I'll answer all your questions later. Kagome, I'm so glad to see you're all right… you're just going to have to trust me for now. But right now, we have to go… I just found Temari," she explained, smiling weakly.

"Temari? You actually found my sister! How's she doing?" Gaara asked excitedly, his eyes bright with delight. Maybe she could have survived after all!

"Honestly, I don't know. As soon as I spotted her I came back here to get you… figured you had the right to know and see her first before we do anything," she admitted.

Sakura said confidently, "Well then, we'll have to get over there to rescue her as fast as we can. We don't know how long we've got until Naruto attacks. Sango, could you please lead us to where she is?"

Sango nodded, getting off Kirara. If they flew the ninja wouldn't be able to see where they were going. Keeping in mind that there were pressed on time, they made haste to reach Temari.

Sango had made sure to memorize the ninja's location and how to get there, so their trip went fairly quickly. Soon they found themselves at the edge of the trees, looking at the castle.

Sure enough there was Temari in the distance, sprawled out with her fan by her side. Gaara's eyes widened when he saw her limp form; finally he'd be rejoining his sister and they could get out of there together.

He could tell right away that she was alive. Despite her being far away, so far away he could barely see her among the dancing blades of grass, he just knew.

It was that bond that all siblings shared which allowed him to know this. Sensing that she wasn't doing well at all, he turned to the others.

"She's alive, I know she is. We have to go save her before–" he started, though something distracted him before he could finish his sentence. The ground had suddenly begun to shake.

Naruto was finally attacking, and there was nothing they could do to stop him.

Gaara became panicked, worrying for his sister. He was about to rush to save Temari and pull her out from the range of Naruto's attack, but Sakura once again stopped him. She knew he'd only get caught up in it with her, and she didn't want her only way out of this world to be obliterated.

"Temari!" he called, as he struggled to escape Sakura's grip. It was no use; her raw strength was too much for him, and he didn't want to actually attack her.

The sound came first, a deafening screech that nearly caused Gaara to forget about his own sister to drive away the pain. He became disoriented, the noise having the power to drive him insane.

He could see the others covering their ears, trying desperately to block out the horrible noise. Though he couldn't hear them he knew they were screaming in pain; he could see it in their faces.

If this went on much longer, he wasn't sure if they'd be able to last. At the rate this was going, the screeching would literally scramble their brains.

As if an answer to his prayers, the noise soon stopped. It may have been because he was temporarily deaf, but he heard nothing. Absolutely nothing reached his ears; not a bird or a cricket or even the whisper of the wind. Just silence.

He looked back in the castle's direction, a dazzled look on his face. He was still very dizzy from the ringing in his head, and thought he might pass out. The buzzing in his head slowly dissipating, he suddenly felt sick.

Bending over, he felt the contents of his stomach rush up to his throat. All at once his past meals poured out of his mouth, a sickening pool of disgusting stuff. He wiped his mouth when he was done, panting. Still not understanding what was going on, he glanced at the others.

It seemed that everyone's body was reacting to the noise differently. Kirara just looked dizzy, stumbling around the group; Kagome looked embarrassed, for she'd unwillingly soiled her pants; both Sango and Sakura were nearly out cold, laying on the dirt and drooling.

Unsure of what to do, he looked backup at the castle in hopes that he'd find something that would explain what was going on. To his amazement when he did this, he saw something extraordinary.

Temari, being unconscious at the time the sound had swept across the area, had been affected by it in a different way. It had jolted her awake, and she was now sitting up. Though she was still far away, he could see that she was clearly confused.

Gaara looked in amazement as she continued to look around. Eventually she got her bearings somewhat and shakily got up, wanting to leave the site of her fight. She began to limp in the direction opposite Gaara, unaware that they were even there.

"Temari! Temari, over here!" Gaara called out, wanting nothing more than to meet up with his sister again. He'd already lost his brother in this thing he'd caused; the same couldn't happen with her.

Evidently his voice reached her ears, for she turned around to see where he was. Spotting him at the edge of the trees she smiled; it must all be over now that they were meeting up again. Happily she gave him a little wave before beginning to hobble over to him.

Unfortunately, it was the last thing she ever did.

As it turns out, the horrible screeching noise hadn't been Naruto's actual attack. It had only been the beginning; an attack so devastating that the sound was faster than the attack itself, it was now the destruction's turn.

Her hand still outstretched in the air, she was suddenly enveloped in a blinding light of brilliant red. The intensity of the light singed the red-haired boy's eyes, but he found himself unable to look away.

Before his very eyes he saw his sister, engulfed in the fury of Naruto's attack. Slowly her silhouette seemed to melt away, her body disintegrating in the heat of the attack. Had Gaara's nose not still been thick of the rotten smell of his insides, he was sure he would have smelled the burning of her flesh as more and more of her form disappeared.

Eventually the mass of flames died down, but long before that the last of Temari disintegrated completely. Her remains, merely tiny chunks of flesh and ashes, were swept away on the winds that the attack had created, and the survivors soon again had a good view of the scene.

The castle completely destroyed and replaced by a fairly large crater, Naruto was the first thing they saw when the smoke and dust began to clear. Across from him, just as calm and collected as before, Naraku calmly floated in the air.

:End of Chapter 28:

So I'm finally back from camp. I'm not going to go into detail about it here, but if you'd like to know of all the awesomeness that happened you can check out my journal on Deviantart. Yeah.

But you all know what that means: moar Ninja in a Demon's World! I'll be updating the rest of this pretty quick here, once chapter with every review. I only have 2 more full chapters and 4 mini-chapters to post yet, so you can see the end pretty quick here if you all review.

Oh noes, Temari be dead! And Naraku be alive! How will this end?! You'll have to stay tuned to find out.

In other news, something awesome! I guess I did really good in school last year, because I got rewarded. I now have 250 toward a post secondary education from the school or whatever! I'm so excited! So I now REALLY hope to continue learning of writing and stuff after high school.

I was mentioned in my podcast for my TF2 fanfiction! Woohoo!

Next chapter will come when I get a review.


	29. Premature Death

Chapter 29

"N-Naraku… he's still alive…" Gaara gaped, as he stared in a dumbfounded way at the two of them. Indeed, Naraku was still kicking. Most of his body had been blown away in the blast, though it hadn't disintegrated like Temari's had; he didn't even seem to notice his missing body parts.

That was an advantage of being at least partly demon in this world; he could withstand things that ordinary humans couldn't. Seemingly not caring that his body was a series of shapeless blobs floating in the air near him, the only thing he did to retaliate was protect the remainder of his body with a barrier.

He could regenerate his body easily enough, but only if he had something to work off of. Smirking, he floated around Naruto, continuing to taunt him.

Naruto, growing more and more enraged, allowed for the Fox Demon's chakra to consume him further. Seeing his opponent still alive after that blast only made him want to destroy the fiend even more.

The chakra of the Fox Demon continuing to take control and manipulate Naruto, a sixth and seventh tail quickly beginning to form. The enormous amount and power of the chakra continued to grow, raising Naruto into the air as his chakra armour grew to an unbelievable size.

He was beginning to look more and more like the demon inside him, and it didn't look like he was going to stop any time soon. With a fearsome roar he lifted a paw and brought it down on what remained of the enemy.

The simple action of stomping on the ground like that forced everyone to acknowledge his power, not that they hadn't previously.

The force of his simplistic attack send the group flying backward even though they weren't even remotely near the attacker. The trees behind them too were knocked back, near-instantly uprooted.

Their wind knocked out of them when they were forced against the trees behind the ones that had been uprooted, they gaped in amazement at the beast's raw power.

Lifting his foot from the ground, Naruto found that Naraku had once again survived. Had it not been for the barrier he'd created he might not have come out of it unharmed, but he was still there.

Cackling, he rose from the ground, already beginning his regeneration process. He knew he couldn't easily be beaten, and was going to continue pushing the boy until he was at or past his limit.

Slowly an eighth tail emerged from the mass of pulsating chakra. Soon the transformation would be complete, and no good could honestly come from that; if he completely transformed, Kagome's world would face an enemy possibly even greater than Naraku.

Being driven almost purely by the Fox Demon's rage, Naruto continued to lash out. He delivered blow after devastating blow, each time unable to destroy Naraku once and for all.

The onlookers watched in amazement, barely caring that with each attack they themselves were being tossed around by the aftershock of the attacks. They couldn't believe what was happening before them; such was the power of the beast.

Naruto, still unable to crush Naraku, lifted his head to the cloudless night sky. Soon after the eighth tail appeared the ninth began to emerge, completely transforming his body. Kyuubi was offering all the chakra it had in hopes of breaking free from its host, and Naruto was taking what it had to give.

A fearsome roar escaped his throat as the transformation came to an end. He was now all-powerful, all the Demon Fox's chakra at his disposal. There was no way his enemy could survive this time. And once he took care of that pest, it would be the perfect time to wreak havoc on the rest of this world.

Not wanting to take any chances, the Fox Demon's mind convinced him to use one of his most powerful attacks. He'd make sure Naraku couldn't run away this time.

With that he tilted his head back again, his mouth open. Slowly at first, but with growing speed, the surroundings began to change. The colourful trees began to lose their beauty, and the same happened with every other living thing in Naruto's area.

He was sucking the life out of everything in the area, using their power to boost his own attack. His radius was small at first, but grew as he sucked the plants and creatures dry.

Naraku found himself immune to this life-sucking pre-attack, but even so he didn't like what was happening. If this monster attacked with that much power at such a close range, even he wouldn't be able to survive it.

To regenerate he'd need at least a small part of his body to go off of, but this attack would surely annihilate him, leaving no remains whatsoever.

For the first time he looked up at Naruto, a nervous look on his face. Quickly he called for Hakudoshi, whom he planned would take him away before the beast's blow hit. With that in mind he regained his cold composure, smiling wickedly.

He'd be getting away, while Sango and the others would most likely be destroyed by the blast. Even though they were sitting on the sidelines a ways away, the attack would engulf them as well.

Soon Hakudoshi rode in on his demon horse, Entei. Naraku had a hasty discussion with him, but stopped short when Naruto again lowered his head. The attack was ready and they were all still here; this was no time for chatting.

He'd wasted too much time already, and under Hakudoshi's protection they began to raise into the air to make their getaway. Before they could get away, however, something very unexpected happened.

With a roar Naruto collapsed, knocking down some nearby trees and nearly crushing Hakudoshi. There on the ground he writhed violently, roaring in pain.

Soon his struggling stopped, and he lay motionless in the crater he'd created. The lives he'd stolen from the nearby living things began to escape from his body, making their way back to their rightful hosts.

As time went by the magnificent colour of the surrounding trees and animals came back, their lives returned to them. Once things looked completely normal again in that respect Naruto began to change, his transformation reversing for some reason.

"Do… do you thing he managed to regain control and is reversing it so he doesn't hurt us all along with him?" Sango asked curiously, as a few of the tails gradually disappeared and he began to shrink back to his normal size.

Sakura doubted it, but didn't say anything. She was unsure what was going on, but she somehow knew it couldn't be good.

"No, that's not it," Gaara said, speaking from experience, "The only ways I know of to stop someone when they reach that final stage of a transformation into a Tailed Demon is to either defeat them or do something drastic to bring them back to reality."

The matter puzzling all of them (especially Kagome because she had no idea what was going on in the first place), they looked on. There was nothing they could do but watch the events unfold and hope for the best.

Naraku chuckled as the last of Naruto's tails disappeared and the mass of chakra surrounding his body began to do the same. Soon the orange substance was completely gone and he was nearly looking normal again.

"Naruto!" Sakura called out, running past Gaara and Sango. She no longer cared if Naraku was still there and living; something had happened to the boy to make this sudden reverse-transformation happen, and she had to find out what.

The others followed her, not quite knowing why. They wanted to know what had happened as well, but still they were suspicious of Naraku. They didn't know if he was planning something or not, and were cautious in their approaching them.

Naraku did nothing, nor did his henchman. He wanted to see what would happen next; Naruto's sudden actions surprised even him.

Soon all of them were crowded around the boy's motionless body, Naraku watching on from above. The mood quickly turned sour when they saw what was wrong with Naruto.

His skin was still a brilliant shade of dark red, a mix of blood, burns, and remaining fragments of the Fox Demon's chakra. His clothes had been torn to shreds by the mass of power he'd borrowed, showing off the whole of the damage he'd taken on.

Almost completely closed, his eyes gave him a look of odd peacefulness. The whole time his friends stood observing him he didn't move an inch.

"Naruto…" Sakura whispered, tears forming in her eyes, "Naruto, hang in there. We'll save you… we have to. We have to find some way to… you can't leave us…"

Refusing to give up hope she began pouring chakra into her hands, intending to heal him. She'd seen the state he'd been in after getting a fourth tail back in her world once and knew that the chances of reviving him were slim, but hope wouldn't allow her to give up on such a dear friend.

"Kukuku," Naraku laughed from inside his protective bubble, as he watched the girl waste her efforts, "Looks like he couldn't even handle his own power. How sad… for you, that is. One less wretch for me to deal with."

Gaara whipped around to face him, a furious look on his face, "You, just shut the hell up! You're supposed to be dead right now… if it wasn't for you, Naruto would still be alive! I'll kill you…"

"I highly doubt that. But…" he said cockily, "I'm afraid in this condition, I can't decimate you properly. Hakudoshi, bring me to the other castle and leave this scum to prepare for our next attack. Kagome… I'll be back for you later."

With that Hakudoshi obeyed, ordering his demon horse to fly away. Soon the villains were nearly out of sight and out of reach.

"Bastards, get back here! YOU'RE DEAD!" Gaara yelled fiercely, nearly losing control. It was true; this enemy could bring out the worst in people.

Putting her hand on his shoulder Kagome said comfortingly, "Gaara, let it go. You've already lost one friend… risking your life on top of that just isn't worth it."

"I know, you're right…" he sighed, turning back to the others. He found that he couldn't bear to look at Naruto's lifeless body and quickly looked away, "We should get going. That Inuyasha guy will probably be needing us pretty quick here."

"Inuyasha? What happened to Inuyasha? Where is he?" Kagome asked, suddenly frantic. Having been taken from her comrades at the very beginning of the battle against Gaara, she had no idea that he'd turned full-demon.

"He…" Sango started, unsure of how to word it, "Inuyasha lost control when he couldn't defeat Gaara, and his sword shattered… he turned full-demon. We went to Totosai, but he can't do anything until we get a bondant… so we came to get you."

"You mean… everyone risked their lives and some of you died to save me?" she gaped, barely believing that even strangers would do such a thing, "What about Miroku and the others? Are they all right?"

Sango nodded, "If the barrier has been maintained, they should be perfectly fine. But if the barrier fails and Inuyasha breaks free… well, I think we all know what that'll mean…"

"We can't let that happen! I have to turn him back to normal right away," Kagome cried, "Where are they?"

Sango rounded them up and although it hurt them to just leave a comrade lying there, they set off for the Kaede's village, where Inuyasha was being contained. If they were to save him and the village he'd been caught attacking, they had to act fast.

:End of Chapter 29:

So I got a review sooner than I thought I would. That being said, here is the next chapter! Woohoo! Only one chapter to go after this, so yeah... and the four mini-chapters to tie up loose ends. So thats about... 5 more updates. So keep on reveiwing, and youll know what happens very very soon!

So of course, Narakus cocky even though hes on the edge of death. And he escapes to attack them another day. Because for some reason I like to leave things relatively balanced in the fanfictions I write. I dunno why I keep that balance and make it go along with what the shows would be like. Oh well.

But wait! What of Inuyasha? Hes still full demon and needs saving! Stay tuned to see what comes of him.

In other news, Im going to be having a contest soon. I have a random guest pass to TF2 in my possession, and Ill be giving it away to the winner of said contest. But first I have to figure out what that contest will be like. Ill tell more of it in coming updates, but if you really want to keep track of it Ill be updating on progress in my journal. Yeah. So if you want to see how awesome TF2 is for 3 days for free, feel free to enter when I get the contest up.

Next update will come when I get another review.


	30. Inuyasha's Fate

Chapter 30

Soon they arrived at the village, out of breath. They'd rushed to get there as fast as they could, hoping to the high heavens that Inuyasha was still contained.

"What… what happened here? I thought this place was practically levelled!" Kagome gaped, as she looked at the outskirts of the village. Something was most definitely different from the last time she'd been there.

"Yeah… It's even different from when we came by…" Sakura commented, "But now… what on earth happened here?"

The entire village looked so different. While before they'd set out to rescue Kagome it had been devastatingly worn down and torn apart from Gaara's attack, now it looked almost normal again.

Houses that had been without roofs and walls were now well into the process of begin rebuilt; in fact, the entire village looked to be in that state. And it looked like things were coming along very well.

The group of five walked silently through the bustling village, nearly not believing their eyes. At least half the village had been rebuilt I their absence. It almost didn't make any sense.

All around the dirt streets the villagers could be found, all helping the cause in some way or another. Some villagers took to the rebuilding while others fetched the supplies they needed, and others yet worked on the general plans. Everyone had a job to do and most of them were hard at work.

As they walked down the dirt roads they weaved in and out of many groups of people working on projects together. Many of them waved or greeted the gang before going back to work.

Even though their village had very nearly been completely destroyed, they all seemed genuinely happy for some reason. It was as if Gaara had never attacked the village in the first place and Inuyasha had never turned full-demon.

Soon they arrived at the other end of the village, where Inuyasha was being contained. Immediately Kagome gasped and ran franticly to Miroku and Kaede, though the others stayed back just a little.

To them, upon seeing what was going on around the barrier, it was obvious why so much had happened in such a small time span. Even Sango could see it, and she knew nothing about the boy who'd organized it.

There in the middle of the mass of activity was Rock Lee, sprinting to a group fixing Kaede's house with a large load of supplies in his arms. As he passed he noticed the group standing there, and immediately stopped, carelessly dropping his load.

"Gaara, everyone! You're back!" he called joyfully, sprinting toward them. As he neared them he noticed that many of his friends weren't present and asked, "What happened to the others? Where's this Kagome person? Did you rescue her?"

"Yeah, we rescued her. She's over there talking to Miroku and Kaede," Sango answered, looking past Rock Lee to her friend.

"As for the others…" Sakura started, though she couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. Lee got the jest of it, though, and sadly hung his head.

He'd known that there may be some casualties in this rescue mission, but to go from a group to a group half that size was a little more than slightly devastating. But they'd obtained their goal, so those they'd lost hadn't died in vain.

"But never mind that," Sango said, trying to break the intensely sad mood that had suddenly fallen over the group, "What's going on here? This place looks so good compared to when we left!"

"Oh, that…" Lee laughed heartily, rubbing the back of his neck and smiling, "The bond of friendship you share with your friends really got me worked up. I felt I had to do something; you guys just motivated me so much. So I started rebuilding and the others joined in when they saw what I was doing, and pretty soon everyone was doing it!"

"So you randomly decided to rebuild stuff and it caught on?" Gaara asked, hardly believing that one person could cause all this.

"Yup, that pretty much sums it up!" he smiled.

They all looked in amazement again, happy that the villagers were so well off. Rock Lee volunteering to stay behind had turned out to be a very good thing in then end. However, they couldn't dawdle forever; they still had work to do.

With a sense of urgency they strode to where Kaede and Miroku were holding up the barrier. Both of them looked like they were strained to their limits, the keeping of the barrier taking its toll on their bodies and minds.

There they also found Kagome, bombarding Miroku with questions he was unable to answer. When the rest of them approached he looked relieved; maybe they'd be able to calm her down so he could concentrate on the barrier.

"Kagome, please calm down," Sakura said soothingly, pulling her away from the monk gently. The girl was somewhere between livid rage at Gaara for doing this to Inuyasha and an intense sorrow at seeing the half-demon like this.

She didn't struggle, falling limply to the ground. Unable to sort out her emotions she broke down crying. She didn't know what to think or do, and her sadness got the best of her.

"Kagome, it's OK. Gaara did do this, but he realized his wrong and set out to rescue you with us. And now you're here and Inuyasha needs saving," Sango said, moving to comfort her friend.

"Y-yeah, but… why d-did all of this have t-to happen?" she sobbed, still not quite able to collect herself.

"That'll be one of those things we'll probably never know," Sango said blankly, even though she did know. She didn't think Kagome would react well to knowing that Gaara alone had caused all of this.

"Take a few minutes to collect yourself, OK? When you're ready you can go ahead and try to calm this guy down so he doesn't destroy everything," Sakura suggested.

They went with that, and waited a few minutes for her to get a little relaxed. That time to relax was cut short, however, when someone interrupted their moment. It truly sounded urgent.

"Hey, I don't mean to be rude or anything," Miroku started, grunting slightly, "But we kind of have to get going. This barrier's not going to last much longer. Kaede's long past her limit, and I'm afraid I'm nearing mine as well."

They looked over curiously, and saw that he was indeed right. She was awake only by sheer force of will and nothing more. If she suddenly dropped unconscious due to exhaustion the barrier would surely fail and Inuyasha would be let free.

If they didn't act quickly that would soon happen, for she could go at any given moment, and if Inuyasha weren't reverted to his normal state of mind by then, there would undoubtedly be a mass massacre.

"Kay," Kagome said confidently, suddenly getting up. She'd leave her looming questions for later; right now, she had some serious saving to do.

Miroku know what to do as she approached, and opened up a very small hole in the far side of the barrier. While everyone else distracted the crazed Inuyasha, she snuck around and silently crawled in.

For a moment it seemed like he was too busy trying to get to the people on the outside of the barrier to notice her sneaking up behind her. But soon it was evident that he was aware of her presence; as she got nearer he randomly whipped around, slashing at her arm.

She screamed in pain as his claws ripped through her skin, but didn't back down. If she failed, everyone else would be doomed.

"Inuyasha, you don't have do to this," she said with certain forcefulness to her voice, hopeful that it would reach him.

He didn't respond, merely advancing toward her menacingly. He was beyond control and had fully given into the demon blood in his veins; she could see it in his eyes. But that didn't mean she couldn't change him back.

"Inuyasha, please! I know you don't want to do this!" she cried, flinging herself at him and embracing him in a giant hug, "Please, come back."

For a moment he looked like he might be coming back, but that quickly wore off, as he pushed her away and lunged at her. In the blink of an eye she was on the ground with Inuyasha looming over her, a bloodthirsty look in his eyes.

Swiftly he swiped at Kagome, slashing open her arm again. Tears formed in her eyes as she looked up at him; he seemed too far-gone almost, and she was quickly becoming unsure of if she could succeed.

"Kagome!" she heard faintly the voice penetrating the barrier. Looking over she saw Shippo, pressed against the near invisible wall. He looked frightened, worried sick for her safety.

Late to the party, he hadn't even known that the gang had returned until the rumours had reached his work group. As soon as he knew he rushed to meet them, only to find that Kagome could very well be near death.

"Don't worry, Shippo. I'll bring him back, you can count on it," she whispered, though she knew he wouldn't be able to hear her. He'd reminded her of what was at stake, and given her a new dose of confidence and determination.

Though she couldn't move one arm because the slashes had gone so deep, she again got up and lunged at him and hugged him as best she could. Before he could react she pressed her lips against his, engaging in a passionate kiss.

His eyes opened wide in surprise for a moment before relaxing and kissing her back. The two stood there kissing for a few long minutes while Inuyasha slowly changed back into his half-demon form.

Soon he was back to normal, though they continued kissing for a few minutes longer. As the barrier dispelled a few moments later the two parted, looking slightly embarrassed. They turned to the others, blushing.

"I…" Inuyasha started, though he didn't finish. Kaede had fainted, her exhaustion getting the best of her. Before doing anything else he and his friends carried her to her hut to rest.

Soon they were all back outside, relieved that it was all finally over. It had become quite the adventure, and they were just glad that the whole thing was behind them.

"That was really something…" Miroku said casually, inching closer to Sakura, "If you guys hadn't arrived when you did, we'd all be dead. I'm just glad you're all safe."

Very soon after that his cheeks were both red and swollen, for he'd been hit by very forcefully by both Sakura and Sango. He'd yet again acted indecent, squeezing Sakura's butt.

"Stupid pervert…" Sakura fumed, as she cracked her knuckles. She was ready to give this guy the beating of his life for violating her like that. But before she could, however, Gaara stepped between them.

"Sakura, not now. We've freed these people to the best of our ability, and we don't need to mess it up again," he said, "I suggest we get out of here. We still need to right the wrongs in our own world."

She sighed, "Yeah, you're right. Sango, promise you'll deal with him accordingly, will you? He shouldn't be allowed to get away with that sort of thing so easily."

Sango nodded, smiling. She knew just how to deal with the perverted monk, and she'd get to that just as soon as the ninja were gone.

"OK, let's get going," Gaara said suddenly, taking hold of Sakura and Lee's hands. It was just the three of them he'd be teleporting; every other ninja had been defeated in some way or another.

They all said their goodbyes, and soon the only thing left of the ninja was a small pile of sand.

:end of Chapter 30:

So that's what Lee's been up to while they were all away! You all probably completely forgot about him, didn't you? I think I did for a little while... but I always had this planned for him. It just seems like something he'd end up doing. And Inuyasha's now saved! But there are so many loose ends yet, so I'm going to be posting the minichapters after this. Every time I get a review, of course.

They'll be covering what happened to the Inuyasha gang after the fact, the Gaara gang after the fact, Kakashi, and Sasuke... but not nesisarily in that order. So yeah... look forward to that.

Anyway, school is fast approaching for me. I went in to have a teacher changed and discovered I have no grade 11 science, which I need to graduate. I know I put one down when signing up for classes, so I dunno what happened. Now the only way I can get in the class I want is if someone else drops out, which really stinks... I shall cross my fingers.

And since school is coming up, I decided to do some preparing. I'm not one to get all hyped up about back to school and go on shopping sprees, but I got ready in my own little way. For the past few years I've had no hairstyle, just tying it up in a ponytail every day. Well i decided it was time for me to get some bangs (they were previously as long as the rest of my hair, so I couldn't do much with them) and get the rest layered. I have to say, I look SO much better... I actually feel good about myself now!

So yeah... first minichapter should appear when I get a review for this chapter.


	31. Extra 1: Saved?

Extra: Saved?

"RHAA! Damn you, Old Man! Can't you do this in a better way?"

His screams of anger and pain rang out in the air as everyone waited patiently outside the cave. As usual Inuyasha was having a fit over having his teeth pulled, though he didn't try to stop it.

He knew it had to be done to keep everyone safe; unless Tetsusaiga was repaired, he could randomly turn full-demon and go on a rampage if provoked.

Soon the procedure was over, and Inuyasha was back with the others, rubbing the side of his face. They were about to head back to the village to rest when someone unexpected showed up.

"Inuyasha… weak as ever, I see. Can't even keep dear Father's sword intact, can you?" the demon said calmly, as he landed in front of them. He looked calm and cocky as always.

"Sesshomaru… what the hell do you want?" Inuyasha growled, glaring at his brother. He figured nothing good could come of him being there, and immediately went on the defensive.

"I sensed a massive aura around here, and I thought I'd investigate," he answered, "It was much bigger and powerful than Naraku's."

Inuyasha was about to retort, but Kagome stopped him. She'd gotten an idea, and wanted to test it out. If it worked, they could have a new comrade in their fight against Naraku.

"Sesshomaru, that aura you were following disappeared randomly, didn't it? That's because the boy died. But you… you could save him with Tensaiga, couldn't you? I can guarantee he'd be a good asset in the war against Naraku," she said, looking the demon in the eyes.

Sango caught on quickly and added, "Yes, before he died he came so close to defeating Naraku. I could see the fear in Naraku's eyes; he knew he was about to be finished of. None of us have ever gotten that far."

Sesshomaru stayed silent, thinking. While he did so Rin jumped from Aun's back, rushing to his side. Jaken reluctantly followed, trying to stop the human girl.

"Rin, you get back here! Master Sesshomaru is thinking… don't disturb him!" the small demon demanded, though to no prevail. Rin ran on ahead anyway, completely ignoring him.

"Lord Sesshomaru, Lord Sesshomaru! I think you should help them. If this guy kills Naraku, we can all live peacefully," she suggested, pulling on his robe.

He looked at her and then back to Inuyasha's gang, his decision made. Getting ready to leave he told them, "Fine, let's get going. Who knows, maybe he will be of some use to us."

"But Lord Sesshomaru! Think what you're doing! What if–" Jaken started, though a swift foot to the face effectively shut him up.

Kagome and Sango silently cheered together before readying to go. Soon they were all ready to get going, and soon after that they were on their way.

"Kagome, what are we doing? We have more important things to do than save some stupid kid," Inuyasha complained, as he reluctantly ran along the dirt path. He didn't understand; he'd been full demon at the time and didn't know the boy's power.

"If the boy hadn't died when he did, Naraku would be dead right now. If we can revive him, we'll stand a much better chance," she said simply. From then on he didn't argue, keeping his complaints to himself.

Soon they arrived where Naraku's castle had once stood, and a look of amazement crossed Inuyasha's face. There was the crater Naruto had created in his blind rampage, but he couldn't bring himself to believe his eyes.

"What the hell happened here?" he asked in bewilderment, as he took in the devastating scene.

"This would be the work of that 'stupid kid', Inuyasha. Now come on, we have to go see him," Sango said in a gloating way, as she made him push on.

Soon they were in the very middle of the enormous crater, where Naruto had been when he'd died.

However, rather than feeling elated like she'd thought she would she found herself to be troubled. Something wasn't right, and it puzzled her to no end.

"This is nice and all, but…" Shippo started, sounding slightly nervous, "But where's the body? You guys sure this is the place? I mean, it probably could've been somewhere else, right?"

"No, Shippo, this is definitely the place. But I just don't get it… he was here before, but now he's just gone," Kagome countered, looking at where the boy had been. Indeed, his body was missing.

"Do you think Naraku took it to do experiments on it or something?" Miroku suggested, drawing blanks.

"No," Sesshomaru denied calmly, "If he's as injured as you say he is, he wouldn't do something as trivial as move the body of the one who nearly killed him. He'd focus his efforts on getting better."

There was a moment of silence in which everyone tried to figure out what had happened, but their efforts were utterly fruitless. Soon everyone had given up, unable to solve this mysterious puzzle.

Turning on his heel Sesshomaru ordered Rin and Jaken to prepare to leave. He said, "This was a waste of our time. Come on, we've got better things to do than hang out with those failures."

Before they knew what was happening the rouge demon was nearly out of sight, of to attend to other matters of more importance.

"We… should probably do the same. There's no way we can solve this," Miroku suggested, seeing that it would be futile.

"Yeah," Sango agreed with a soft laugh, trying to look at the bright side of things, "It probably wouldn't have been a good idea to resurrect him anyway."

"Hey, just hold on a minute!" Inuyasha demanded loudly, "First you actually manage to get me excited about seeing this boy, and then I can't see him? What the hell!"

"It would be best if you forgot you ever heard about Naruto, Inuyasha. He's gone and I somehow don't think he's ever coming back," Kagome said sadly, as she began to walk away.

"Mew," Kirara said, following the girl. Soon they all followed and were on their way back to the village, though it wasn't for some time that Naruto completely escaped their thoughts.

:end of Extra: Saved?:

So yeah, here's the first of four minichapters to finish off the fanfiction. I realized a while back that there would be quite a few lose ends, so I decided to make what happened to everyone clear. And I still had a few more characters I wanted to include, so... yeah.

Naruto's body has disappeared? How? Why?

See, I still keep you guessing until the end even now. So there's still some things you don't know.

But anyway, things are now right again in the Feudal Era, or at least, back to the way they were before Gaara appeared. And that's good.

I'll post the next one either when I get a review or next monday... whichever comes first. But I'd prefer the reveiw because I love to see what you all think!


	32. Extra 2: Power

Extra: Power

Sakura looked at him curiously before taking hold of the others. She couldn't understand why he would want to stay in such an obvious deathtrap. The ninja didn't let herself dwell on it for long, however; they had to get out of there, and quick.

Looking at him one last time she activated her ninjutsu, and the group instantaneously disappeared. Fleeing the scene, they had guaranteed their safety for the time being.

"What's this? Not fleeing with your friends… do you plan to protect them, perhaps?" Naraku taunted once the others had left.

"Friends?" Sasuke laughed, "I cut my bonds with them long ago. They're nothing to me any longer."

"Keh… you can never completely cut those bonds. Never," Naraku growled, speaking from experience. No matter what he did to cut his human side's bonds with Kikyou, he always failed.

"That doesn't matter right now. What I want is that jewel you're holding, and before we're done here it'll be my possession. With its power there's no way my brother will live," the missing-nin said calmly, glaring at his opponent.

Naraku said nothing, being distracted by Naruto. Unsure of what would happen, he was making it a priority to keep an eye on the boy.

"Hand over that jewel thing and I'll leave you be peacefully. You should be grateful; I'm usually not this generous," Sasuke bargained, giving the evil being a single chance to cooperate.

It was the only chance he would give. After that, Naraku would regret he'd ever angered the ninja. He wouldn't hesitate for a moment to kill him if it meant obtaining this source of power.

"Hm? Did you say something?" Naraku asked meanly, nearly completely ignoring Sasuke. He'd heard the offer, but here was no way he'd accept it.

"Heh… your loss," Sasuke chuckled, as he glanced at Naruto. He couldn't help but feel a tinge of pity Naruto as he looked over, but didn't let his emotions show. He'd cut his bonds with him long ago.

Casually he stood there, thinking of the best way to obtain the jewel. Before long it came to him, and a wicked grin crossed his face. This would be easy.

Naruto would unknowingly do most of his work for him, in the process of his transformation. With so much power at his fingertips, there wasn't any way he could contain and control them in his current state of mind.

Quickly making the appropriate hand signs he held his hands to his mouth and waited. He could feel Naruto's attack coming, and knew exactly when to strike. His calculations were exact.

A few seconds before Naruto's power was let out he released his own attack, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Fire Style Jutsu!"

A giant fireball rode on his breath as he blew out, growing in size as it went. Just as Sasuke had predicted, Naruto's attack was released nearly right after, the two attacks mingling in a deadly way.

Naruto's attack came out in the form of supersonic waves, which only Sasuke could sense because of his sharingan eyes. Even his eyes didn't protect him from the effects of Naruto's normally invisible attack.

His stomach lurching violently he fought back the urge to vomit. He succeeded, and very quickly recovered. If this was to be done right, he'd have to act fast.

Gathering chakra in his hand, he felt the air around his fist grow electrified. Following close behind his fireball, which was infused with Naruto's nauseating supersonic sound wave, he prepared to strike.

In an amazing burst of red and yellow the fireball made contact with its target, blocking Sasuke from his view. It was then, with Naraku's visibility at his lowest, that Sasuke went in.

Using his eyes to seek out the Jewel and guide him he burst through the flames, his hand outstretched. Luckily Naraku liked to gloat and had taken the group for granted, bringing all of his Jewel Shards with him.

Though chidori could easily give away his position, Naraku wasn't able to locate him at the moment; because of Naruto's part of the attack he was kneeling over vomiting.

Swiftly he rammed his fist into Naraku's chest, feeling for the Sacred Jewel. He soon found it and ripped it from his body. Immediately he felt a surge of power, and it felt great. However, he didn't allow himself to bask in the Jewel's glory for too long just yet.

Looking over at Naruto, he saw that with every passing moment he grew more and more unstable. Leaving Naraku jewel-less and alone to deal with the boy he teleported himself to safety, just in time.

In the distance Sasuke saw a great flash of light; there was no doubt about it, it was Naruto's attack. At last he could ignore him and his friends, and focus on his prize.

For a thing so small it contained so much raw power. As it was he could probably defeat his brother, but in the middle of that thought something caught his attention. There were still a few pieces missing in the jewel, pieces that he wanted in his possession.

Wandering the lands he searched for more of the mysterious purple shards, and before too long he sensed a pair. They were moving fast, luckily in his direction. He easily intercepted their path, and found that they belonged to another demon.

Skidding to a halt the wolf demon looked Sasuke up and down. With a confused look on his face he asked, "I haven't ever seen someone like you around here… where you from? What's your name, stranger?"

Sasuke answered neither of his questions and instead said threateningly, "You have a Jewel Shard in each of your legs. I suggest you hand them over if you don't want to be hurt."

"Keh. You have to be kidding me! Who do you think you are?" Koga laughed, a bit overconfident in his abilities.

Sasuke didn't answer, staying completely silent. His answer was evident in his actions, though; immediately he got ready to attack, intending to take the jewel shards by force.

Before he could launch his attack he noticed something strange: random parts of his body were disappearing. He tried to fight it, to stay in the Feudal Era, but it was no use. Soon he was completely gone, the Jewel Shards dropping to the ground.

Koga looked on, a bewildered look on his face. Soon he snapped out of it, though, and moved to pick up the nearly completed Jewel that Sasuke had left behind.

"This is my lucky day!" he laughed, as he neared the powerful object. He never got the chance to take it, however.

Just as he came near enough to take it, Hakudoshi swooped down from the skies on his demon horse, Entei, and snatched it up. Koga glared at the demon angrily, though he could do nothing to stop him.

"Easy come, easy go…" he shrugged, as he walked away to meet up with his team.

:End of Extra: Power:

So here's another mini-chapter, telling Sasuke's story. Because I realized after the fact that after everyone got away I completely forgot about him... and his story had to be told. I just couldn't leave him standing in the explosion; he's too smart for that.

And I think we all hate it when authors 'finish' books when they still have so many loose ends... unless of course that's to make room for a sequel. But there is no sequel here, so I shall keep you all happy! Hurra!

Anyway, now you know what happened to him. He got his hands on the jewel but couldn't keep it. And he too disappeared? What's with all these disappearances?! You'll know soon enough!

So I started school a few days ago, and things so far are going pretty good. I'm going to be starting peer tutoring soon to work on my 'helping kids' skills... and nearly everything else I'm taking is leading up to when I teach in Japan. Earth Science (earthquakes and volcanos in Japan), Leadership, Peer tutoring... yeah, it's all leading up to my adventures in Japan, and I'm happy about that. So far I haven't had any conflicts (aside from film and leadership, but I'm going to try to work something out because I really want both) and I'm already slightly ahead in Earth Science.

Yeah... second day and I'm ahead! Well, more time for writing, I suppose. And apparently I'm going to be learning some D&D in that class (I sit beside two people who play it and I've been meaning to get into it). And I actually know people in my classes this year! I'm so happy, even though I'm taking eleven courses... I'll be busy, but the good kind of busy.

Next chapter will come out either when I get a reveiw or when next Monday rolls around. As always I'd prefer the reveiw, but yeah. Can't force ya.


	33. Extra 3: Warped

Extra: Warped

Having only the slightest idea of what was going on, Kakashi tumbled down the path connecting the two dimensions. Random images flew past him in the endless black void all around him, a confusing mix of randomness.

Soon he saw a sky of blue, and he knew that he was nearing the destination he knew absolutely nothing about. The concept of being dumped in such an unfamiliar world frightened him. Going to the Feudal Era was one thing, but this was a completely different one; at least before Gaara had told him a bit about the place.

The sliver of light grew bigger as he approached, and he soon was thrust into this new world. Much to his dismay he found that he'd been expelled from the time-tunnel in the air, and gravity soon worked its magic.

With a soft thud he landed face first on the soft grass, unwillingly eating a mouthful of dirt. He got up shakily, spitting out the dirt as he did so. He was about to take a look at his surroundings to get his bearings, but something caught him off-guard before he could.

Looking at him curiously, an inch from his face, squatted a very odd looking young man. Before Kakashi could say or do anything the guy leapt up to his feet, a look of pure childish joy spread across his face.

"Another one! Another one just came! Right from the sky!" the blue skinned boy yelled excitedly. He managed to calm himself down a bit and turned to an officer standing nearby, "Hey Cosgrove, you think I should talk to him?"

"Yeah, that seems like the right thing to do… talk to thing that fall from the sky," the beefy cop said as he leaned casually against his car and munched on his favourite type of donut, "But that could just be me."

"OK, thanks Cosgrove!" the boy said enthusiastically, turning his attention back to the guy who'd fallen from the sky.

Kakashi got up, a few questions in mind. This blue man was bombarding him with randomness, and he wanted some answer. Before the other could say a thing he asked, "OK, what exactly is going on here? I mean, where am I?"

"I think a more fitting question is WHO are YOU?" Freakazoid said smartly, one of the few things he said that actually made sense, "How'd you get here?"

"Ah, well I suppose I can tell you. I was accidentally sucked into my own attack, and ended up here. The attack sucks stuff up and sends it to another place. So… that's how I got here," Kakashi explained.

"Ah! So that's where these came from!" Freakazoid said brightly, pulling a few arms and a leg out from seemingly nowhere.

"Uhm… yeah… about that…" the grey-haired man muttered, staring at the severed limbs awkwardly. To think that all the attacks he'd launched with that sharingan had led here, let alone that this boy had kept the stray body parts…

In the very least, it was nothing less than odd and creepy. In fact, this whole situation was starting to make him a tad uncomfortable.

"You know, you should really dispose of those things, before they start spreading diseases and stuff," the man said, backing away cautiously.

He wanted to get out of there as soon as possible; this oddball was starting to freak him out.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," the blue teenage superhero shrugged, tossing the limbs over his shoulder. They landed a little ways away, nobody in the area seeming to care all that much.

Kakashi got up, looking to leave. He still had no idea whatsoever where he was, and it seemed that this boy would be of no help to him. He began to walk away, saying, "Well, I'll be going now. I need to go… do something."

"Oh hey! I could show you around for a bit! The Lobe isn't scheduled to try to take over the world for another two hours. I should probably be getting ready to battle him, but… that can wait," Freakazoid said happily, as he checked his watch and put his arm around Kakashi's shoulder.

"No, I really think I should go it alone," the ninja insisted, ducking away from the boy.

"Please? PLEASE? Please please please please please? With a cheery on top?" he whined, hopping up and down.

Kakashi sighed, placing his palm to his head. Was there no way he'd leave him to do his thing? Apparently not, he realized.

Seeing that there would be no getting out of this, he sighed heavily again. He muttered, "Yeah, sure… whatever…"

"Y-you serious? Really? Woohoo!" Freakazoid yelled excitedly. Taking Kakashi by the arm he ran in a random direction.

Kakashi groaned, growing tiresome of this boy's crazy antics. Right then and there he wished he could disappear. Seeing that Freakazoid was looking at him weirdly yet again he asked, "What is it now?"

"I don't know how to break it to you, but… you have no legs," Freakazoid commented, looking toward the ground where the ninja's legs used to be.

Kakashi looked too, though he was actually happy to see that his legs had randomly disappeared. He now knew that Gaara and the others had succeeded, and the ninja world had been returned to normal.

Soon he was completely gone, though not before exploding at the blue boy. He'd never see the boy again, he was sure of it, and that alone made him feel ecstatic. Finally he'd be free of this annoying 'superhero'.

Freakazoid was left all alone, looking oddly at where Kakashi had just stood. He casually walked away, shrugging and acting as if nothing had happened and the ninja hadn't ever even been there.

:end of Extra: Warped:

So yeah... nothing much to say on this one. I just kinda had an irresistable urge to do a bit of Freakazoid fanfiction, but I couldn't come up with a good enough idea, and this seemed to fit (what with nobody knowing where exactly the other dimension that Kakashi's Sharingan leads to and all) so I went ahead and did it. I know it's not the best, but it made my friends laugh and that's good enough for me.

It was definately fun to make. I'll say that much.

And now you know... the end of the chapter.

But anyway... now that I've finished ripping off the announcer from Freakazoid (see above line XD) I'll get back to the actual comments. It was really fun to make and made some people laugh, and yeah. that's about it.

Things are pretty cool over here. I might have to drop one of my classes 'cause it conflicts with another, but it's all good. I'm going to try to work something out with the teacher, 'cause I really want to do both.

And at this very moment I'm recording a podcast with some peoples. If things go well I might become a host, since the one I'm standing in for never shows up or returns messages apparently! I is happy!

Only one minichapter left to go, and it revolves around Gaara's gang (of course! They're the only ones left!) and what happens to them. It will be the conclusion to the story as a whole, so make sure to stay tuned for that. It'll come out either when I get a review or when Monday rolls around again.


	34. Extra 4: Home Sweet Home

Extra: Home Sweet Home

The three of them rose from the sand covered ground; finally back in their home world. Completely exhausted, they collapsed onto the lush grass, taking the time to relax and reflect a little.

"That… was really random…" Lee sighed, looking up at the canopy of the trees. It felt weird, going there with seven people and coming back with only three. Never before had a team of his suffered such incredible losses at one time.

"So many good people died over there… how on earth will we defeat Akatsuki now? With Naruto and Kakashi gone, we can't possibly stand a chance," Sakura moped, her hope steadily draining.

Things looked bleak for them. In this short time their forces had steadily dwindled. But Gaara had been through enough hardship for a lifetime, and didn't want to dwell on the matter currently.

"Hey, at least we survived. And we're back in my time now so if we need it, we can take as long as we need to regroup and make a new plan," Gaara told them, trying to be optimistic.

Sakura looked over at him, a sour look on her face. How dare he try to make light of what had happened! It was an outrage, and she planned to teach him a lesson.

It was quite obvious that she was about to beat on him, and Lee knew he had to stop her. Things hadn't turned out quite as planned, but she couldn't use Gaara as a punching bag to vent her frustration.

Thinking quickly he jumped between them, hissing, "Sakura, stop that now! I know we lost a lot, but we have to try to keep calm. I think I knew a way to get our comrades back."

The girl didn't lower her fist, but at the same time didn't proceed with punching Gaara's face in. Sounding sceptical she muttered, "And how would we possibly be able to do that?"

"We're in the past, right? So the past selves of everyone should still be alive," he started, smiling brightly, "If we can find them we can train them, and then go defeat Akatsuki when the time comes."

For a moment she thought, realizing he was right. Slowly she lowered her hand, backing down and saying softly, "That's so crazy… it just might work…"

"Gaara, you think you could help us out with this?" Bushy Brows asked, turning to the red-haired boy.

He didn't even have to think about it. He would do anything to save his future, no questions asked. Without hesitation he nodded vigorously.

"Yes, of course I'll help! It might take some time to gather them all, but…" he started, but was distracted by something before he could finish, "But… what's going on? What's happening to you guys?"

Up until then nobody ha noticed it, but something weird was happening to Sakura and Lee. They didn't realize it, but it had been going on since they'd arrived in Gaara's time, a slow process.

Sakura looked down at her hands in horror, unsure of what to think. She cried out, "What is this? My hands… where are they?"

Lee looked at his hands to find that they weren't there. Somehow they'd completely disappeared, leaving nothing but empty space. Unlike Sakura, though, who was scared out of her wits, he seemed oddly calm.

"Guys, it's not just your hands. Your whole bodies look lighter, like they're about to disappear too!" Gaara blurted, only worsening Sakura's panicked state.

Still Lee remained calm, smiling even. He seemed to be the only one who knew what was going on.

Sakura glared at him, his odd calmness enraging her. She shouted madly, "What the hell is you're problem, Lee? We're randomly disappearing into thin air and you're just sitting there smiling!"

He laughed, "Sakura, there's nothing to be worried about. Just leave it be and everything will be alright."

"Alright? ALL RIGHT! We're freaking being erased from existence, how can that possibly be 'alright'?" she exploded.

"Exactly. We're being erased from existence! Don't you get it?" he began, finally explaining his cheeriness, "That means our future doesn't exist. By coming back to his own time Gaara's corrected the future. You and I live in a Gaara-less world, but now that he's here again he's changed the course of history… again. It's back on the right track!"

For a moment silence engulfed the group, though it soon ended when they all let out whoops of joy. Things were finally right again.

"Yes… thank you so much for saving us, Gaara. No more Akatsuki-ruled future for us," Sakura thanked.

Gaara hugged the two of them, not quite knowing what to think. He asked sadly, "Wait! When will I see you guys again? Please don't leave just yet."

Over the course of their journey he'd grown attached to his older comrades, and he didn't want to see them go like this. He knew he couldn't stop them, though, and didn't bother trying to keep them there.

"Exactly as we are now… you'll never see us like this again. Whatever we make of ourselves in this new future you created, however, those are the versions of us you'll see," Lee said, as everything but his head disappeared.

"So in a few years you'll see us again… the right way. Until then…" Sakura finished, making it her final goodbye.

With that the two of them disappeared, leaving nothing behind. Gaara just stood there for a moment, unsure of what to do. Soon he became aware of two voices coming from the clearing. It was his brother and sister, freaking out about his own disappearance.

Realizing what he had to do, he calmly strode into the clearing. At first the other two sand ninja didn't realize he was there, and they didn't until he alerted them of his presence.

"Kankuro… Temari? What's going on?" he asked as he neared them, trying to sound as if he hadn't just been on a random adventure.

The two of them whipped around to face him, tears streaming from their eyes. At first they looked surprised, but that quickly wore off as they realized their brother was safe.

No words were spoken as they embraced him in a hug. They were just happy he was OK, for they'd assumed the worst.

Gaara thought to tell them what had happened, but quickly decided against it. They didn't need to know the truth, not quite yet. With that in mind he hugged them back, stashing his secret in the dark depths of his mind.

:End of Extra: Home Sweet Home:

Well, here it is... the very end of the fanfiction. Now you know what's been happening to everyone in the minichapters. Makes sense, I think... since he corrected the past the future versions of themselves no longer exist in that form.

Thanks to all the readers who've stayed along for the whole ride and who've left reviews for me. This was really fun to make and it was great to see all your reactions to everything that's happened to the characters.

If you really want to read more of my writing I've got a series in the works, a trilogy about my first OC, Slert. It'll be invader Zim based, but I'm really proud of it so far. I don't know when that'll be coming out, but I do know it'll be epic.

SPECIAL THANKS TO RICHARD FOR BETA READING THE FIRST HALF OF THIS, AND POSSIBLY THE REST IF HE FEELS LIKE IT. I'm sorry, I forget your username and all I have is my emails from you XD.

Now... I will have to go now. I don't know if I'll make another fanfiction quite like this, but it's a possability; I have too many ideas in my head...

I hope to see you all in future projects, and I hope you all enjoyed reading Ninja in a Demon's World! :D


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